Any person’s ability to access health-care services has a profound effect on every aspect of her health, yet residents in rural communities face a pressing and pervasive problem of difficulty with accessing health-care. This is brought about by the limited number of health-care providers in their areas. Such persons are more likely to skip the basic health-care due to costs involved, increasing their risk for serious and disabling health conditions; and even when they access health-care services, they are often burdened with large medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses.
