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Increases in rural mortality rates outpaced those of urban area for natural and external causes from 1999–2001 to 2017–2019

by Kelsey L. Thomas (Conley), Elizabeth A. Dobis and David McGranahan
3/18/2025

Rural Economy & Population
Rural Poverty & Well-Being

Horizontal bar chart showing total natural-cause mortality rates and total external-cause mortality rates for rural and urban areas from 1999–2001 to 2017–2019.

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USDA, Economic Research Service researchers, using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, examined the widening natural-cause mortality gap between rural and urban working-age adults. This increasing disparity is an indicator of worsening rural population health.

Increases in rural mortality rates outpaced those of urban area for natural and external causes from 1999–2001 to 2017–2019

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Increases in rural mortality rates outpaced those of urban area for natural and external causes from 1999–2001 to 2017–2019

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Analysis

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