Summary:
The Public Health Service (PHS) Act directs HHS, through HRSA, to identify maternity care target areas (MCTAs; geographic areas within health professional shortage areas (HPSAs) that have a shortage of maternity care health professionals) for the purpose of assigning National Health Service Corps participants who are maternity care health professionals to HPSAs with a shortage of such professionals. On September 27, 2021, HRSA published a Federal Register notice (FRN) soliciting feedback on proposed criteria to be used to identify MCTAs. On May 19, 2022, HRSA published an FRN that summarized and responded to the comments received during the 60-day comment period and presented the final criteria which are used to identify and score MCTAs. One of the criteria selected was the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). SVI was used to assign points based on the relative level of social vulnerability within an area. Areas with SVI values at or above the 75th percentile received 2 points. Areas with SVI values between the 50th and 75th percentiles received 1 point. Areas with SVI values below the 50th percentile received 0 points. HRSA is now proposing to change the criteria and point scales for MCTAs by removing the criterion for SVI and reallocating its two points as follows: one point to population-to-full-time-equivalent maternity care health professional ratio and one point to score for travel distance/time to nearest source of accessible care outside of the MCTA.