AR · Healthcare shortage profile
Prairie County, AR
MUA standing opens this profile: Prairie County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 30.8 (lower index = greater measured need). Population 8,282.
- Active HPSAs
- 2
- Population
- 8,282
- Peak shortage score
- 16.0
- MUA Index
- 30.8
Light-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Prairie County carries a comparatively light shortage burden - 2 active HPSA designations, more than 10% of the 3,289 real US counties, with primary care the deepest gap.
- 2
- Active HPSA designations
- 1
- Primary-care shortages
- 16
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 90%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Prairie County, AR 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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Closing Prairie County's active designations would take about 1.3 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.1 primary care, 0.2 mental health. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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50% of Prairie County's 2 active designations are primary care.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 1 mental health, 0 dental (denominator 2).
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Peak HPSA score 16.0 sits below HRSA's 17-point high-priority line.
Below-17 designations still count as shortages for program geography, but they do not clear the high-priority NHSC placement threshold on this release.
Prairie County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
12 Census ZCTAs intersect Prairie 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
4 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
Designated volume without a high-priority score
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Prairie County carries 2 active designations, above 10% of real US counties. None of those scores clear HRSA's high-priority line of 17 on this release, so the page leads with severity reading rather than a national distribution chart.
State peer position. Prairie County falls in the lower half of AR counties by active-designation volume, at rank 67 of 75. 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: 05117. Population: 8,282.
Medically Underserved Area
Active HPSA 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 2 active (designated) HPSAs in Prairie County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| LI - Prairie County | primary_care | 16.0 |
| LI - Prairie County | mental_health | 12.0 |
Light-burden reading for Prairie County
MUA standing opens this profile: Prairie County sits inside a Medically Underserved Area indexed at 30.8 (lower index = greater measured need). Primary care is where Prairie County is stretched thinnest: HRSA scores it 16.0 of 25, the county's highest severity reading and still short of the 17-point priority line, though the designation itself is formal. Mental health reads 12.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 30.8, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Prairie County carries 2 active designations and sits below the national mid-pack (above 10% of counties). A light footprint still matters: a single high-score dental or mental-health record can open program geography even when the county total looks small next to heavy peers.
Prairie County falls in the lower half of AR counties by active-designation volume, at rank 67 of 75. Read the active scores and the deepest-care guide link below before collapsing this county into a "no shortage" story.
Light-volume FTE gap for Prairie County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Prairie County's active designations: about 1.3 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Score neighbours for Prairie County's MUA-led profile
One peer set beside the MUA standing: nearest primary-care HPSA score (16.0 here).
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Prairie County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Prairie County carries an MUA designation (index 30.8; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- How do Prairie County's HPSA rows sit beside the MUA?
- 2 active HPSA designations (1 primary care / 1 mental health / 0 dental); highest-scored active name is "LI - Prairie County" (score 16.0; primary care; 3,186 people in the service area; ~1.1 FTE still needed on the record; designated 05/04/2022). MUA and HPSA are separate tracks, one does not substitute for the other.
- What does the 16.0 HPSA score mean next to the MUA?
- 16.0 sits below the 17-point high-priority HPSA line. MUA index 30.8 remains a separate need measure.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 05117. This county’s designations come from BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_PC.csv (primary care) and BCD_HPSA_FCT_DET_MH.csv (mental health) — 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 05117 (Prairie County, AR), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 2; peak score 16.0; signature MUA index 30.8. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.