medically underserved area


medically underserved area

A region of the US that has a relative or absolute deficiency of healthcare resources, including hospital beds, equipment and/or medical personnel. An MUA is defined by an Index of Medical Underservice (IMU) rating of ≤ 62%, which is based on four variables: ratio of primary medical care physicians per 1,000 population; infant mortality rate; percentage of the population with incomes below the poverty level; and percentage of the population age 65 or over.

medically underserved area

A region that has a relative or absolute deficiency of health care resources–eg, hospital beds, equipment and/or medical personnel