A large number of America’s counties are without a single doctor. While this may not be an acute problem much of the time, with the outbreak of COVID-19, people in these counties may have to travel as much as several hours to reach medical aid in surrounding areas. In turn, this can trigger the overloading of health care in the counties with physicians because of the influx. This is particularly true when there is a surge of patients.
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Counties that have not reported any COVID-19 cases are exclusively rural and have low populations. However, this has begun to change. Wyoming has the fewest COVID-19 cases among all the states at only 322, according to the Bing COVID-19 Tracker, and only six deaths. In mid-March, the number statewide was three cases. Today, the virus is spreading so fast that only two of Montana’s counties have no reported cases.
The problem with shortages of doctors in rural areas is unlikely to change. Few doctors want to live in relative isolation. This includes little or no contact with other physicians. The Washington Post pointed out recently about those who practice in out of the way areas, “Rural doctors are three years older than urban doctors on average, with half over 50 and more than a quarter beyond 60. Health officials predict the number of rural doctors will decline by 23 percent over the next decade as the number of urban doctors remains flat.” The problem of travel time to reach a doctor will worsen.
This list of counties without a doctor includes the state, the name of the county (or other area) and the population therein.
| State | County | Population |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Coosa County | 10,754 |
| Alabama | Lamar County | 13,946 |
| Alaska | Aleutians East Borough | 3,370 |
| Alaska | Bristol Bay Borough | 867 |
| Alaska | Denali Borough | 2,074 |
| Alaska | Hoonah-Angoon Census Area | 2,145 |
| Alaska | Kusilvak Census Area | 8,202 |
| Alaska | Lake and Peninsula Borough | 1,620 |
| Alaska | Skagway Municipality | 1,157 |
| Alaska | Yakutat Borough | 605 |
| Arkansas | Newton County | 7,828 |
| California | Alpine County | 1,120 |
| Colorado | Bent County | 5,938 |
| Colorado | Costilla County | 3,776 |
| Colorado | Dolores County | 2,067 |
| Colorado | Hinsdale County | 794 |
| Colorado | Kiowa County | 1,376 |
| Florida | Glades County | 13,754 |
| Florida | Liberty County | 8,242 |
| Georgia | Atkinson County | 8,342 |
| Georgia | Baker County | 3,200 |
| Georgia | Echols County | 3,936 |
| Georgia | Lanier County | 10,425 |
| Georgia | Long County | 19,014 |
| Georgia | McIntosh County | 14,106 |
| Georgia | Montgomery County | 9,031 |
| Georgia | Quitman County | 2,358 |
| Georgia | Schley County | 5,213 |
| Georgia | Taliaferro County | 1,628 |
| Georgia | Taylor County | 8,142 |
| Georgia | Terrell County | 8,729 |
| Georgia | Treutlen County | 6,740 |
| Georgia | Webster County | 2,605 |
| Hawaii | Kalawao County | 88 |
| Idaho | Camas County | 1,102 |
| Idaho | Clark County | 873 |
| Idaho | Custer County | 4,172 |
| Illinois | Cass County | 12,505 |
| Illinois | Cumberland County | 10,908 |
| Illinois | Edwards County | 6,486 |
| Illinois | Henderson County | 6,795 |
| Illinois | Pope County | 4,325 |
| Illinois | Pulaski County | 5,509 |
| Illinois | Scott County | 5,002 |
| Indiana | Benton County | 8,613 |
| Indiana | Crawford County | 10,566 |
| Indiana | Switzerland County | 10,696 |
| Indiana | Warren County | 8,201 |
| Kansas | Chase County | 2,683 |
| Kansas | Hamilton County | 2,640 |
| Kansas | Jewell County | 2,850 |
| Kansas | Osage County | 15,772 |
| Kansas | Rawlins County | 2,497 |
| Kansas | Wallace County | 1,524 |
| Kansas | Woodson County | 3,147 |
| Kentucky | Ballard County | 8,039 |
| Kentucky | Hancock County | 8,801 |
| Kentucky | McLean County | 9,201 |
| Kentucky | Owsley County | 4,435 |
| Kentucky | Robertson County | 2,134 |
| Louisiana | Tensas Parish | 4,615 |
| Michigan | Keweenaw County | 2,105 |
| Minnesota | Jackson County | 9,946 |
| Minnesota | Kittson County | 4,250 |
| Minnesota | Norman County | 6,597 |
| Minnesota | Red Lake County | 4,030 |
| Minnesota | Wilkin County | 6,324 |
| Mississippi | Benton County | 8,312 |
| Mississippi | Greene County | 13,345 |
| Mississippi | Issaquena County | 1,339 |
| Mississippi | Noxubee County | 10,742 |
| Mississippi | Tunica County | 10,024 |
| Missouri | Caldwell County | 9,100 |
| Missouri | Crawford County | 24,102 |
| Missouri | Oregon County | 10,558 |
| Missouri | Shannon County | 8,249 |
| Missouri | Shelby County | 6,021 |
| Montana | Carter County | 1,222 |
| Montana | Daniels County | 1,737 |
| Montana | Garfield County | 1,293 |
| Montana | Judith Basin County | 1,961 |
| Montana | McCone County | 1,718 |
| Montana | Musselshell County | 4,639 |
| Montana | Petroleum County | 523 |
| Montana | Powder River County | 1,752 |
| Montana | Prairie County | 1,109 |
| Montana | Treasure County | 679 |
| Montana | Wheatland County | 2,140 |
| Montana | Wibaux County | 1,020 |
| Nebraska | Arthur County | 457 |
| Nebraska | Banner County | 742 |
| Nebraska | Blaine County | 482 |
| Nebraska | Chase County | 3,971 |
| Nebraska | Colfax County | 10,585 |
| Nebraska | Deuel County | 1,883 |
| Nebraska | Frontier County | 2,631 |
| Nebraska | Garden County | 1,906 |
| Nebraska | Gosper County | 2,028 |
| Nebraska | Grant County | 649 |
| Nebraska | Greeley County | 2,374 |
| Nebraska | Hayes County | 893 |
| Nebraska | Hitchcock County | 2,834 |
| Nebraska | Keya Paha County | 793 |
| Nebraska | Kimball County | 3,619 |
| Nebraska | Logan County | 768 |
| Nebraska | Loup County | 609 |
| Nebraska | McPherson County | 499 |
| Nebraska | Nance County | 3,607 |
| Nebraska | Rock County | 1,436 |
| Nebraska | Sherman County | 3,086 |
| Nebraska | Stanton County | 5,988 |
| Nebraska | Thomas County | 725 |
| Nebraska | Wheeler County | 818 |
| Nevada | Pershing County | 6,508 |
| Nevada | Storey County | 4,006 |
| New Mexico | Harding County | 692 |
| New Mexico | Hidalgo County | 4,305 |
| New Mexico | Mora County | 4,551 |
| North Carolina | Gates County | 11,544 |
| North Carolina | Tyrrell County | 4,052 |
| North Dakota | Benson County | 6,936 |
| North Dakota | Billings County | 940 |
| North Dakota | Bowman County | 3,166 |
| North Dakota | Burke County | 2,131 |
| North Dakota | Divide County | 2,288 |
| North Dakota | Dunn County | 4,289 |
| North Dakota | Eddy County | 2,316 |
| North Dakota | Golden Valley County | 1,789 |
| North Dakota | Grant County | 2,376 |
| North Dakota | Hettinger County | 2,483 |
| North Dakota | Kidder County | 2,482 |
| North Dakota | McHenry County | 5,900 |
| North Dakota | Oliver County | 1,940 |
| North Dakota | Renville County | 2,463 |
| North Dakota | Sargent County | 3,858 |
| North Dakota | Sheridan County | 1,353 |
| North Dakota | Sioux County | 4,376 |
| North Dakota | Slope County | 771 |
| North Dakota | Steele County | 1,917 |
| North Dakota | Towner County | 2,253 |
| Oklahoma | Cimarron County | 2,154 |
| Oklahoma | Grant County | 4,395 |
| Oklahoma | Greer County | 5,843 |
| Oklahoma | Okfuskee County | 12,140 |
| Oregon | Gilliam County | 1,855 |
| Oregon | Sherman County | 1,758 |
| Oregon | Wheeler County | 1,357 |
| Pennsylvania | Forest County | 7,297 |
| Pennsylvania | Sullivan County | 6,089 |
| South Dakota | Bennett County | 3,454 |
| South Dakota | Buffalo County | 1,999 |
| South Dakota | Campbell County | 1,379 |
| South Dakota | Clark County | 3,668 |
| South Dakota | Corson County | 4,203 |
| South Dakota | Hanson County | 3,423 |
| South Dakota | Harding County | 1,242 |
| South Dakota | Hyde County | 1,318 |
| South Dakota | Jackson County | 3,289 |
| South Dakota | Jones County | 936 |
| South Dakota | Mellette County | 2,088 |
| South Dakota | Perkins County | 2,974 |
| South Dakota | Potter County | 2,231 |
| South Dakota | Sanborn County | 2,450 |
| South Dakota | Turner County | 8,315 |
| South Dakota | Ziebach County | 2,756 |
| Tennessee | Crockett County | 14,473 |
| Tennessee | Grundy County | 13,361 |
| Tennessee | Lake County | 7,468 |
| Tennessee | Moore County | 6,384 |
| Tennessee | Van Buren County | 5,742 |
| Texas | Archer County | 8,809 |
| Texas | Armstrong County | 1,879 |
| Texas | Borden County | 673 |
| Texas | Briscoe County | 1,528 |
| Texas | Brooks County | 7,235 |
| Texas | Carson County | 6,032 |
| Texas | Coke County | 3,306 |
| Texas | Collingsworth County | 2,987 |
| Texas | Cottle County | 1,387 |
| Texas | Culberson County | 2,231 |
| Texas | Duval County | 11,273 |
| Texas | Edwards County | 1,953 |
| Texas | Foard County | 1,222 |
| Texas | Glasscock County | 1,348 |
| Texas | Goliad County | 7,562 |
| Texas | Hartley County | 5,691 |
| Texas | Hudspeth County | 4,408 |
| Texas | Irion County | 1,516 |
| Texas | Kenedy County | 417 |
| Texas | Kent County | 763 |
| Texas | King County | 296 |
| Texas | Kinney County | 3,745 |
| Texas | La Salle County | 7,584 |
| Texas | Leon County | 17,243 |
| Texas | Lipscomb County | 3,378 |
| Texas | Loving County | 134 |
| Texas | McMullen County | 778 |
| Texas | Marion County | 10,064 |
| Texas | Mason County | 4,222 |
| Texas | Motley County | 1,230 |
| Texas | Newton County | 13,952 |
| Texas | Oldham County | 2,114 |
| Texas | Roberts County | 938 |
| Texas | Schleicher County | 3,001 |
| Texas | Sherman County | 3,067 |
| Texas | Sterling County | 1,295 |
| Texas | Terrell County | 810 |
| Utah | Daggett County | 1,029 |
| Utah | Piute County | 1,420 |
| Utah | Rich County | 2,391 |
| Virginia | Bland County | 6,350 |
| Virginia | Richmond County | 8,939 |
| Virginia | Emporia city | 5,282 |
| Virginia | Galax city | 6,625 |
| Virginia | Lexington city | 7,106 |
| Virginia | Manassas Park city | 16,591 |
| Washington | Skamania County | 11,837 |
| Washington | Wahkiakum County | 4,264 |
Methodology: To determine the counties with no doctors, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data on the number of primary care physicians by county from the 2020 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps (CHR), a joint program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Data is current as of the year 2017 and ultimately comes from the Physician Masterfile of the American Medical Association. Population data also comes from the 2020 CHR.
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