MO · Healthcare shortage profile
Dallas County, MO
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Dallas County's active designations would take about 20 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Population 17,071.
- Active HPSAs
- 9
- Population
- 17,071
- Peak shortage score
- 20.0
- MUA Index
- 41.9
Heavy-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Dallas County carries a heavier shortage burden than most US counties - 9 active HPSA designations, more than 75% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 9
- Active HPSA designations
- 3
- Dental shortages
- 20
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 25%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Dallas County, MO 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 20.0 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 Dallas County's active designations would take about 20 additional clinician FTEs, with mental health the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 5.7 primary care, 13 mental health, 1.8 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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33.3% of Dallas County's 9 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 3 primary care, 3 mental health, 3 dental (denominator 9).
Dallas County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
13 Census ZCTAs intersect Dallas County, between the 9 and 15 ZIP cuts across published counties: neither a postage-stamp footprint nor a metro-scale lattice.
Largest land-share ZCTAs
5 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.
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Dallas County carries 9 active designations, above 75% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Dallas County falls in the upper half of MO counties by active-designation volume, at rank 41 of 115. 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: 29059. Population: 17,071.
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 9 active (designated) HPSAs in Dallas County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI-Dallas County | dental | 20.0 |
| Mercy Clinic Family Medicine- Buffalo | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Dallas County Family Medical Center | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Dallas County Family Medical Center | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Mercy Clinic Family Medicine- Buffalo | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Mercy Clinic Family Medicine- Buffalo | dental | 17.0 |
| Dallas County Family Medical Center | dental | 17.0 |
| LI-Dallas/Polk Counties | primary_care | 16.0 |
| LI - Springfield | mental_health | 16.0 |
Heavy-burden reading for Dallas County
The clinician FTE gap is the sharpest number here: closing Dallas County's active designations would take about 20 additional FTEs on HRSA's providers_needed estimate. Dental care carries Dallas County's deepest shortage reading, 20.0 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 17.0 of 25; Mental health reads 17.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 41.9, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Volume places Dallas County above 75% of real US counties (9 active designations: 3 primary care, 3 mental health, 3 dental). Peak severity on the current designated set is 20.0. 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.
Dallas County falls in the upper half of MO counties by active-designation volume, at rank 41 of 115. 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.
Dallas 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
3 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
3 designations
- Dental
Dental
3 designations
Heavy-volume FTE gap in Dallas County
Signature reading: HRSA providers_needed sums to about 20 FTE across Dallas 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 Dallas County, MO · 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
Dallas County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Dallas County's 9 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 MO before you draw conclusions from a single score. MO 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 Dallas County's 20.0. This compares the designation score only, not local appointment availability or care quality. Start with Tehama County, CA and Darke County, OH.
Showing 6 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties with a matching designation count to Dallas County's 9
One peer set for this FTE-led county: nearest active designation count to 9 - the inventory behind the ~20 FTE published need.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Dallas County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Dallas County carries an MUA designation (index 41.9; 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 Dallas County?
- Id-de-duped providers_needed across active HPSAs totals ~20 FTE, with mental health the largest slice (13). "LI-Dallas County" is the highest-scored active row (score 20.0; dental; 7,150 people in the service area; ~1.8 FTE still needed on the record; designated 06/16/2017). This is HRSA's published gap, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
- Which named designations drive Dallas County's FTE reading?
- Active names on this release include "LI-Dallas County", "MERCY CLINIC FAMILY MEDICINE- BUFFALO", "DALLAS COUNTY FAMILY MEDICAL CENTER" and "DALLAS COUNTY FAMILY MEDICAL CENTER". Discipline counts: 3 primary care, 3 mental health, 3 dental across 9 designated rows.
- Do Dallas 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 Dallas County's FTE burden compare inside MO?
- 9 active designations and ~20 FTE published need. Dallas County falls in the upper half of MO counties by active-designation volume, at rank 41 of 115. Score-nearest counties on this release include Tehama County, CA and Darke County, OH.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 29059. 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 29059 (Dallas County, MO), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 9; peak score 20.0; signature 20 FTE gap. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.