Tag Archives: Rural America

Rural jails turn to community health workers to help the newly released succeed

County sheriffs are seeking to address the needs of people coming out of jail, who are more likely to have substance use and mental health challenges. Garrett Clark estimates he has spent about six years in the Sanpete County Jail, a plain concrete building perched on a dusty hill just outside this small, rural town […]
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Commentary: How you can help expand high-speed internet in rural areas

The United States is currently engaged in a nationwide project aimed at providing high-speed and reliable internet access to every household, known as the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. This initiative, reminiscent of the Rural Electrification Act (REA) of 1936, seeks to improve the quality of life and support businesses in rural America […]
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Rural Americans are way more likely to die young. Why?

State Library Ed. Note: If you cannot access this story via the link below, state employees can access this Washington Post story HERE via the State Library’s subscription to the US Newstream database. Alternatively, state employees can contact us for access: LibraryHelp.SLO@slo.oregon.gov or 503-378-8800. Working-age people in rural parts of the country are 43 percent more likely to die than their […]
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We need a ‘Marshall Plan’ for public media

Local news is too important for our democracy to live and die by ad dollars or fundraising. America’s media institutions have had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad start to 2024. The Messenger, a well-funded, high-profile news site, dissolved after less than a year. Big newspapers from the Los Angeles Times to the IndyStar […]
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Radar gaps in dozens of regions threaten millions as storm season nears 

State Library Ed. Note: If you cannot access this story via the link below, state employees can access this Washington Post story HERE via the State Library’s subscription to the US Newstream database. Alternatively, state employees can contact us for access: LibraryHelp.SLO@slo.oregon.gov or 503-378-8800. More than 3 years after a federal report downplayed holes in a network that enables advanced warning […]
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Why people are holding onto landline phones in rural areas

State Library Ed. Note: If you cannot access this story via the link below, state employees can access this Washington Post story HERE via the State Library’s subscription to the US Newstream database. Alternatively, state employees can contact us for access: LibraryHelp.SLO@slo.oregon.gov or 503-378-8800. Providers want to scale back landline service, but people with poor cell reception still rely on it […]
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Why are Republicans more likely to suffer hearing loss? 

State Library Ed. Note: If you cannot access this story via the link below, state employees can access this Washington Post story HERE via the State Library’s subscription to the US Newstream database. Alternatively, state employees can contact us for access: LibraryHelp.SLO@slo.oregon.gov or 503-378-8800. We’re embarrassed to admit it, but at first we saw nothing remarkable about the most detailed map of […]
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Experts: Rural vet shortage requires long-range remedy

Since rural America’s shortage of veterinarians didn’t just appear overnight, farm organizations tackling the problem expect they’ll need a long-range remedy as well. Of nearly 230 shortage areas in the U.S., consisting of one or more neighboring counties, only a minority lost veterinary services relatively recently, according to USDA. “Two-thirds of the shortage areas have […]
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Study: Persistent wildfire smoke is eroding rural America’s mental health

Besides physical effects, wildfire smoke can create economic anxiety, isolation, and despair. In rural areas, scientists see a link between smoke and higher suicide rates. Will and Julie Volpert have led white water rafting trips on Southern Oregon’s Rogue and Klamath rivers for over a decade for their company Indigo Creek Outfitters, out of the […]
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Get out of jail, use drugs: OHSU study finds persistent pattern

People get in trouble with the law because of drug abuse, and find themselves behind bars. It’s what happens after they’re released that interested researchers at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU). They recently published research that shows nearly half (42%) of people who used drugs in rural areas across the country had recently been […]
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