IL · Healthcare shortage profile
Franklin County, IL
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Franklin County's active designations would take about 25 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 37,804.
- Active HPSAs
- 12
- Population
- 37,804
- Peak shortage score
- 23.0
- MUA Index
- 59.0
Heavy-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Franklin County ranks among the most underserved counties in the country - 12 active HPSA designations, more than 85% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 12
- Active HPSA designations
- 4
- Dental shortages
- 23
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 15%
- US counties by volume
Dense ZCTA lattice over Franklin County
Franklin County intersects 19 Census ZCTAs, above the 15-ZIP dense-tercile cut. Shortage designations still attach at the county (or smaller HPSA) grain; the ZIP list is geography, not a second severity score.
Largest land-share ZCTAs in this county
7 additional ZCTAs intersect this county in the crosswalk (ordered by land share).
Source: Census ZCTA–county relationship file joined to this portal's county FIPS set. As of 2026-08-15.
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Franklin County, IL on its own pages , computed from the retained designation mirror as of 2026-08-15. Each line carries its own denominator so it can be quoted as it stands.
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Peak HPSA score 23.0 clears HRSA's 17-point high-priority line.
Scores at or above 17 on the 0–25/26 scales open NHSC placement priority for the matching provider type; eligibility still follows the designated area, not the county boundary alone.
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Closing Franklin County's active designations would take about 25 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 4.7 primary care, 17 mental health, 3.5 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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33.3% of Franklin County's 12 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 4 primary care, 4 mental health, 4 dental (denominator 12).
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Franklin County carries 12 active designations, above 85% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Franklin County falls in the upper quarter of IL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 15 of 102. Ties share a rank.
Computed from current designated HPSA rows for every five-digit county FIPS. See the placement methodology.
Healthcare shortage designations from HRSA. FIPS: 17055. Population: 37,804.
Medically Underserved Area
Peak severity scores
Current designated records only. Scores range 0–25 (primary/mental health), 0–26 (dental). Higher = greater need. What counts as a high score?
Highest-severity HPSA designations
All 12 active (designated) HPSAs in Franklin County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation | dental | 23.0 |
| Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation | mental_health | 22.0 |
| Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation | primary_care | 21.0 |
| Logan Primary Care Services | primary_care | 18.0 |
| LI - Franklin County | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Benton Community Healthcare | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Logan Primary Care Services | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Benton Community Healthcare | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Benton Community Healthcare | dental | 17.0 |
| Logan Primary Care Services | dental | 17.0 |
| LI - Franklin County | dental | 17.0 |
| Southern IL Mhca | mental_health | 16.0 |
Heavy-burden reading for Franklin County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Franklin County's active designations would take about 25 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Dental care carries Franklin County's deepest shortage reading, 23.0 on HRSA's 0–26 dental scale, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Primary care reads 21.0 of 25; Mental health reads 22.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 59.0, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Volume places Franklin County above 85% of real US counties (12 active designations: 4 primary care, 4 mental health, 4 dental). Peak severity on the current designated set is 23.0. The table on this page lists the highest-severity records first so a reader can see which named facilities, geographies, or population groups drive that burden without treating the county total as a personal appointment forecast.
Franklin County falls in the upper quarter of IL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 15 of 102. Heavy-burden counties are where NHSC placement, Community Health Center grant geography, and related federal instruments concentrate; eligibility still follows the designated area and provider type, not the county boundary alone.
Franklin County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Primary care
Primary care
4 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
4 designations
- Dental
Dental
4 designations
Heavy-volume FTE gap in Franklin County
Signature reading: HRSA providers_needed sums to about 25 FTE across Franklin County's active designations (once per HPSA id), a federal gap estimate, not practising headcount.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse, Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) + Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) HPSA primary-care, mental-health, and dental designations for Franklin County, IL · 2026 HRSA designation data updated quarterly; HPSA scores 0-25 (primary/mental) and 0-26 (dental); higher = greater shortage severity. Coverage tiers from U.S. Census ACS PUMS + KFF state tracker.
Acting on a heavy-burden county
Franklin County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Franklin County's 12 active designations make providers here eligible for National Health Service Corps loan repayment, estimate the award and service terms. NHSC estimator
- See how the county's primary care burden compares with the rest of IL before you draw conclusions from a single score. IL overview
- Check whether an area clears HRSA's 3,500:1 population-to-provider threshold with the provider-to-population ratio behind an HPSA score. HPSA score lookup
HPSA scores describe shortage severity within HRSA's designation criteria, not the availability of any individual provider. For a specific appointment, contact a provider or your insurer; use HRSA's current tools to verify a designation.
Counties With a Similar Dental Shortage Score
Other U.S. counties whose active HRSA dental HPSA score is closest to Franklin County's 23.0. This compares the designation score only, not local appointment availability or care quality. Start with Spartanburg County, SC and McLennan County, TX.
Showing 6 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties with a matching designation count to Franklin County's 12
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 12 - the inventory behind the ~25 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Franklin County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Franklin County carries an MUA designation (index 59.0; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- Where is the largest clinician FTE gap inside Franklin County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~25 FTE, with mental health the largest slice (17). "Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation" is the highest-scored active row (score 23.0; dental; 68,620 people in the service area; designated 11/21/2003). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Which named designations drive Franklin County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation", "Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation", "Christopher Greater Area Rural Health Planning Corporation" and "LOGAN PRIMARY CARE SERVICES". Discipline counts: 4 primary care, 4 mental health, 4 dental across 12 designated rows.
- Do Franklin County's FTE gaps unlock federal programs?
- Yes where an ACTIVE designation exists, NHSC, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers follow the designated geography and provider type. A published FTE gap without an active row does not, by itself, open those pathways.
- How does Franklin County's FTE burden compare inside IL?
- 12 active designations and ~25 FTE published need. Franklin County falls in the upper quarter of IL counties by active-designation volume, at rank 15 of 102. Score-nearest counties on this release include Spartanburg County, SC and McLennan County, TX.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 17055. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_PC.csv (primary care) , BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_MH.csv (mental health) and BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_DH.csv (dental) — download the normalized export on our open data page. PlainHealthAccess is not affiliated with HRSA or any government agency.
HRSA Data Warehouse HPSA + MUA/P records for FIPS 17055 (Franklin County, IL), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 12; peak score 23.0; signature 25 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.