CO · Healthcare shortage profile
Alamosa County, CO
Peak severity leads this reading: Alamosa County's highest active HPSA score is 22.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Population 16,376.
- Active HPSAs
- 5
- Population
- 16,376
- Peak shortage score
- 22.0
- MUA Index
- MUA
Mid-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Alamosa County holds a moderate federal shortage burden - 5 active HPSA designations, more than 47% of the 3,289 real US counties, with mental health the deepest gap.
- 5
- Active HPSA designations
- 2
- Dental shortages
- 22
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 53%
- US counties by volume
Few Census ZCTAs touch Alamosa County
The Census ZCTA-county crosswalk lists only 5 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas intersecting Alamosa County, a sparse footprint relative to most US counties in this mirror (at or below the 9-ZIP tercile cut).
Intersecting ZCTA
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 Alamosa County, CO 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 22.0 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 Alamosa County's active designations would take about 3.3 additional clinician FTEs, with dental the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 1.5 mental health, 1.8 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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40% of Alamosa County's 5 active designations are mental health.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 1 primary care, 2 mental health, 2 dental (denominator 5).
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Alamosa County carries 5 active designations, above 47% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Alamosa County falls in the upper half of CO counties by active-designation volume, at rank 28 of 64. 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: 08003. Population: 16,376.
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 5 active (designated) HPSAs in Alamosa County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Valley-Wide Health Systems | primary_care | 22.0 |
| Valley-Wide Health Systems | dental | 22.0 |
| Valley-Wide Health Systems | mental_health | 21.0 |
| San Luis Valley Mhca | mental_health | 19.0 |
| LI Alamosa County | dental | 18.0 |
Moderate-burden reading for Alamosa County
Peak severity leads this reading: Alamosa County's highest active HPSA score is 22.0, clearing HRSA's 17-point high-priority line. Alamosa County's shortage runs equally deep in primary care and dental care: both scored 22.0 by HRSA, past the 17-point line HRSA uses to open National Health Service Corps placement and enhanced Medicare reimbursement. Mental health reads 21.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, a separate HRSA designation from the HPSA records above.
Alamosa County sits in the middle of the national designation-volume distribution (above 47% of counties) with 5 active records. That is enough for a formal shortage footprint without landing in the heaviest US tier. Compare the three discipline counts (1/2/2) before assuming every care category is equally short.
Alamosa County falls in the upper half of CO counties by active-designation volume, at rank 28 of 64. For moderate counties, the useful move is usually a state peer check plus the score cards above, not a national superlative claim.
Alamosa County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Mental health
Mental health
2 designations
- Dental
Dental
2 designations
- Primary care
Primary care
1 designations
Mid-pack clinician FTE gap for Alamosa County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Alamosa County's active designations: about 3.3 FTE, a federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse, Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA) + Medically Underserved Areas/Populations (MUA/P) HPSA primary-care, mental-health, and dental designations for Alamosa County, CO · 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 Alamosa County's designations
Alamosa County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Alamosa County's 5 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 mental health burden compares with the rest of CO before you draw conclusions from a single score. CO 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.
Nearby dental score peers
Closest U.S. counties on active dental HPSA score to Alamosa County's 22.0. Open Washington County, OR or Anchorage County, AK next.
Showing 3 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
Counties near Alamosa County's dental score of 22.0
One peer set for this severity-led county: nearest active dental HPSA score to 22.0 (severity lead on this page is “Valley-Wide Health Systems”).
Washington County, OR
22.0 dental score · 600,372 pop.
Anchorage County, AK
22.0 dental score · 291,247 pop.
Kings County, CA
22.0 dental score · 152,486 pop.
Cattaraugus County, NY
22.0 dental score · 77,042 pop.
Knox County, OH
22.0 dental score · 62,721 pop.
Itasca County, MN
22.0 dental score · 45,014 pop.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Alamosa County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Alamosa County carries an MUA designation in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- Which record sets Alamosa County's peak score of 22.0?
- "Valley-Wide Health Systems" leads the active set (score 22.0; primary care; 122,644 people in the service area; designated 10/26/2002). Clearing 17 opens NHSC high-priority placement for the matching provider type on the designated geography. Discipline mix across 5 active rows: 1 primary care, 2 mental health, 2 dental.
- Which other active designations sit under Alamosa County's severity reading?
- After "Valley-Wide Health Systems", the next active names on this release are "Valley-Wide Health Systems", "Valley-Wide Health Systems", "Valley-Wide Health Systems" and "San Luis Valley MHCA". Provider need (id-de-duped) totals ~3.3 FTE across disciplines that still carry a gap.
- Which federal pathways follow Alamosa County's high-severity geography?
- Alamosa County's 5 active designations can open NHSC placement, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers, eligibility follows the designated area and provider type, not merely the county line around "Valley-Wide Health Systems".
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 08003. 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 08003 (Alamosa County, CO), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 5; peak score 22.0; signature peak score 22.0. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.