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The Story of Rural Health

4.5 million Americans live 25 minutes or more from an ambulance station.

Date: 2023

The Story of Rural Health
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More than half of these "ambulance deserts" are found in rural communities, and they are disproportionately found in Communities of Color and immigrant communities. Four of every five counties across the US have at least one ambulance desert, with the South and West having the highest percentages. Eight states--Nevada, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, New Mexico, South Dakota, North Dakota and Idaho--have less than 3 ambulances covering 1000 square miles of land. Many of the ambulance deserts are on Indigenous lands.