CA · Healthcare shortage profile
Lake County, CA
Designation volume is the standout signal for Lake County: 40 active HPSA records, above 99% of real US counties. Population 68,163.
- Active HPSAs
- 40
- Population
- 68,163
- Peak shortage score
- 20.0
- MUA Index
- 55.4
Heavy-burden verdict
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Lake County ranks among the most underserved counties in the country - 40 active HPSA designations, more than 99% of the 3,289 real US counties, with dental the deepest gap.
- 40
- Active HPSA designations
- 14
- Dental shortages
- 20
- Peak severity score (of 26)
- Top 1%
- US counties by volume
Key findings
What the HRSA Data Warehouse does not surface for Lake County, CA 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.
-
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 Lake County's active designations would take about 11 additional clinician FTEs, with primary care the largest gap.
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id (no double-count across status rows): 4.8 primary care, 1.6 mental health, 4.5 dental. This is the federal gap estimate, not a headcount of practising clinicians.
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35% of Lake County's 40 active designations are dental.
Discipline mix from designated HPSA records only: 13 primary care, 13 mental health, 14 dental (denominator 40).
Lake County's mid-pack ZIP footprint
15 Census ZCTAs intersect Lake 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
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.
Corpus placement
Active-designation volume placement
According to current HRSA Data Warehouse records, Lake County carries 40 active designations, above 99% of real US counties. Use the state peer line below before treating the national percentile as a local access verdict.
State peer position. Lake County falls in the upper quarter of CA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 11 of 58. 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: 06033. Population: 68,163.
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 40 active (designated) HPSAs in Lake County, ranked by HRSA shortage score.
| Name | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|
| ME - Mssa 71.1/Clearlake/Clearlake Oaks | dental | 20.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | dental | 20.0 |
| LI/MFW-Lake County | mental_health | 19.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | dental | 19.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | primary_care | 18.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | primary_care | 18.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Community Clinic | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Medical Practice | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clear Lake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Medical Practice | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Community Clinic | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clear Lake | mental_health | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Medical Practice | dental | 17.0 |
| Sutter Lakeside Community Clinic | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clear Lake | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 17.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | primary_care | 16.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 16.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | mental_health | 16.0 |
| Mssa 71.1 Clearlake/Clearlake Oaks | primary_care | 15.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | mental_health | 15.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 15.0 |
| Adventist Health Clearlake | dental | 15.0 |
| Lake County Tribal Health Consortium | mental_health | 14.0 |
| ME - Mssa 71.3 - Hidden Valley | dental | 13.0 |
Heavy-burden reading for Lake County
Designation volume is the standout signal for Lake County: 40 active HPSA records, above 99% of real US counties. Dental care carries Lake 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 18.0 of 25; Mental health reads 19.0 of 25. The county also sits inside a Medically Underserved Area, indexed at 55.4, and the lower the index, the greater the measured need.
Volume places Lake County above 99% of real US counties (40 active designations: 13 primary care, 13 mental health, 14 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.
Lake County falls in the upper quarter of CA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 11 of 58. 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.
Lake County designations by care type
Active Health Professional Shortage Area designations in the county, by provider category (high-priority disciplines emphasized).
- Dental
Dental
14 designations
- Primary care
Primary care
13 designations
- Mental health
Mental health
13 designations
Heavy-volume FTE gap in Lake County
HRSA providers_needed summed once per HPSA id for Lake County's active designations: about 11 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 Lake County, CA · 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
Lake County's shortage designations unlock specific federal programs and comparisons, here is how to act on them.
- Lake County's 40 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 dental burden compares with the rest of CA before you draw conclusions from a single score. CA 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 Lake County's 20.0. This compares the designation score only, not local appointment availability or care quality. Start with Isabella County, MI and Carroll County, NH.
Showing 6 of 2744 counties nationally with an active designation this severe.
High-volume peers of Lake County (40 active)
One peer set for this volume-led county: nearest active designation count to 40 across the national corpus.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Does Lake County's MUA standing sit beside its HPSA records?
- Yes - Lake County carries an MUA designation (index 55.4; lower = greater measured need) in addition to its HPSA rows. MUA and HPSA are separate HRSA tracks; both can open different federal pathways.
- What makes up Lake County's 40 active HPSA designations?
- 40 Designated rows (13 primary care, 13 mental health, 14 dental). Highest-scored name on this release: "ME - MSSA 71.1/Clearlake/Clearlake Oaks" (score 20.0; dental; 1,825 people in the service area; ~3.7 FTE still needed on the record; designated 08/28/2020). Also active: "Lake County Tribal Health Consortium", "LI/MFW-Lake County", "Lake County Tribal Health Consortium". Above 99% of real US counties by volume.
- What does volume-plus-score look like for Lake County?
- Peak active score 20.0 in dental care clears the 17-point line while volume sits at 40 rows.
- What clinician need sits behind Lake County's designation volume?
- Closing published gaps would take about 11 additional clinician FTEs (id-de-duped providers_needed). "ME - MSSA 71.1/Clearlake/Clearlake Oaks" is the severity lead inside that inventory.
- Which federal programs follow Lake County's designation volume?
- 40 active designations can open NHSC placement, CHC grants, Medicare bonus and J-1 waivers, by designated area and provider type, not by county line alone.
- How does Lake County's volume compare inside CA?
- 40 active HPSA rows · peak 20.0. Lake County falls in the upper quarter of CA counties by active-designation volume, at rank 11 of 58. Score-nearest counties on this release include Isabella County, MI and Carroll County, NH.
Source: HRSA Data Warehouse. FIPS: 06033. 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 06033 (Lake County, CA), vintage 2026-08-15. Active designation count 40; peak score 20.0; signature 40 active designations. This profile is reference material, not professional advice; see methodology.