News and Highlights

HHS Releases 2016 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report

The 2016 National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows the progress and opportunities for improving health care quality and reducing health care disparities. Chartbooks on specific topics, such as access to care, patient safety, and healthy living, provide more detailed information. In addition, downloadable slides are available for presentations.

Data Spotlight

On October 10, AHRQ posted a Chartbook on Rural Health Care. Key findings include:

The percentage of all quality measures from 2000 through 2015 saw similar results for residents living in micropolitan (n = 101 measures) and noncore areas (n = 96 measures).
- The quality of care for residents living in micropolitan areas, improved for 54% of the measures, worsened for 11% of the measures, and did not change for 35% of the measures.
- The quality of care for residents living in noncore areas improved for 53% of the measures, worsened for 7% of the measures, and did not change for 40% of the measures.
In 2014, the percentage of people who identified a hospital, emergency room, or clinic as a source of ongoing care was higher for residents of noncore (36.5%) and micropolitan (26.0%) areas compared with residents of large fringe metropolitan areas (15.0%).
Children residing in noncore areas (44.8%) were less likely to have a dental visit in the calendar year than children in large fringe metropolitan areas (57.6%).