County health data
Vernon County, MO
CDC PLACES estimates diabetes at 14.3% of adults in Vernon County (Missouri: 12.3%). This county has 9 HRSA shortage designations (3 area or population, 6 facility), 1 hospital, and 2 health center sites.
License: a US government work, in the public domain (Public Domain Mark 1.0).
For help with food, housing, utilities, or rides in Vernon County, call 211 or visit 211.org.
Health measures compared with the state
40 measures for adults in Vernon County (about 15,019 adults). 24 have a Missouri figure from the same survey.
Largest differences from the Missouri figure: no leisure-time physical activity 34.4% vs 28.1% (+6.3 points), fair or poor health 25.7% vs 19.9% (+5.8 points), and current smoking 20.5% vs 15.3% (+5.2 points).
Health Outcomes
| Measure | Vernon County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arthritis | 33.4% | 29.1% | 26.3% | 2023 |
| High blood pressure | 40.5% | 36.2% | 34.0% | 2023 |
| Cancer, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer | 9.7% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Current asthma | 11.1% | 9.9% | 10.2% | 2023 |
| Coronary heart disease | 9.0% | 4.6% | 4.0% | 2023 |
| COPD | 11.3% | 8.5% | 6.3% | 2023 |
| Depression | 26.6% | 23.1% | 21.8% | 2023 |
| Diagnosed diabetes | 14.3% | 12.3% | 11.8% | 2023 |
| High cholesterol, adults ever screened | 40.7% | 38.5% | 37.2% | 2023 |
| Obesity | 37.8% | 35.3% | 34.4% | 2023 |
| Stroke | 4.6% | 4.5% | 3.3% | 2023 |
| All teeth lost, ages 65 and older | 23.6% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Prevention
| Measure | Vernon County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, ages 18 to 64 | 10.1% | 8.6% | 9.3% | 2023 |
| Taking blood pressure medicine, adults with high blood pressure | 79.0% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Routine checkup in the past year | 78.7% | 79.1% | 78.4% | 2023 |
| Cholesterol screening | 82.9% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Colorectal cancer screening, ages 45 to 75 | 59.2% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Dental visit in the past year | 55.0% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Mammogram, women ages 50 to 74 | 69.5% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Risk Behaviors
| Measure | Vernon County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking | 15.3% | 16.3% | 15.1% | 2023 |
| Current smoking | 20.5% | 15.3% | 12.1% | 2023 |
| No leisure-time physical activity | 34.4% | 28.1% | 24.5% | 2023 |
| Short sleep | 37.9% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Status
| Measure | Vernon County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health | 25.7% | 19.9% | 18.5% | 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress | 19.0% | 16.7% | 15.4% | 2023 |
| Frequent physical distress | 17.4% | 14.0% | 12.6% | 2023 |
Disability
| Measure | Vernon County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability | 20.2% | 16.8% | 13.7% | 2023 |
| Any disability | 43.0% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Hearing disability | 10.9% | 9.7% | 7.4% | 2023 |
| Independent living disability | 11.6% | 9.5% | 7.8% | 2023 |
| Mobility disability | 20.4% | 16.6% | 13.4% | 2023 |
| Self-care disability | 5.2% | 4.7% | 3.7% | 2023 |
| Vision disability | 6.6% | 5.9% | 5.0% | 2023 |
Health-Related Social Needs
| Measure | Vernon County | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Lack of social and emotional support | 19.8% | 2023 |
| Food insecurity in the past year | 16.6% | 2023 |
| Received food stamps in the past year | 14.3% | 2023 |
| Housing insecurity in the past year | 12.8% | 2023 |
| Lack of reliable transportation in the past year | 9.7% | 2023 |
| Loneliness | 31.5% | 2023 |
| Utility shut-off threat in the past year | 9.8% | 2023 |
Source: CDC PLACES county data, as of December 4, 2025. Publisher page
Source: CDC BRFSS prevalence data, as of September 15, 2026. Publisher page
For health centers, health departments, and nonprofits
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Health professional shortage areas
HRSA, the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, designates Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs): places, population groups, or facilities with too few primary care, mental health, or dental providers. An area designation covers a geographic area or a population group, such as low-income residents. A facility designation covers one site, such as a health center or clinic. Each has a score from 0 to 25 (0 to 26 for dental); a higher score means greater need.
HRSA lists 9 designated shortage rows in Vernon County: primary care 3 (highest score 17), mental health 3 (highest score 18), and dental 3 (highest score 17). 3 cover a geographic area or population group; the other 6 are facility designations.
| Discipline | Area or population | Facility | Highest score |
|---|---|---|---|
| primary care | 1 | 2 | 17 |
| mental health | 1 | 2 | 18 |
| dental | 1 | 2 | 17 |
Area and population designations
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| LI-MHCA 8 (Nevada Catchment Area) | mental health | HPSA Population | 18 |
| LI - Vernon/Barton Counties | primary care | HPSA Population | 17 |
| LI - Vernon/Cedar Counties | dental | HPSA Population | 17 |
Facility designations (6)
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| NEVADA REGIONAL PRIMARY CARE CENTER | mental health | Rural Health Clinic | 18 |
| NRMC NOWCARE CLINIC | mental health | Rural Health Clinic | 18 |
| NEVADA REGIONAL PRIMARY CARE CENTER | dental | Rural Health Clinic | 17 |
| NRMC NOWCARE CLINIC | dental | Rural Health Clinic | 17 |
| NEVADA REGIONAL PRIMARY CARE CENTER | primary care | Rural Health Clinic | 16 |
| NRMC NOWCARE CLINIC | primary care | Rural Health Clinic | 16 |
In the Type column, an HPSA Population designation covers one group of people in the area. In HRSA's designation names, LI means low-income residents, and MHCA means mental health catchment area.
Source: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page
Hospitals and readmission rates
CMS Care Compare lists 1 acute care or critical access hospital in Vernon County. The CMS file in this snapshot does not compare these rates with the national rate, so none is marked better or worse.
| Hospital | City | Stars | Heart failure | Pneumonia | COPD | Heart attack | Hip or knee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEVADA REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER | NEVADA | n/a | 21.3% | 16.9% | 19.8% | n/a | n/a |
Each rate is the share of patients readmitted within 30 days of discharge, July 2023 to June 2025. "n/a" means CMS did not publish a rate for that hospital.
Source: CMS Care Compare hospital general information, as of August 13, 2026. Publisher page
Source: CMS Care Compare unplanned hospital visits, as of September 30, 2026. Publisher page
Health centers
2 active health center sites in Vernon County, run by 1 organization.
| Site ↑ | Health center | Address | City |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compass Health - Nevada | COMPASS HEALTH, INC | 320 Mac Blvd | Nevada 64772 |
| Compass Health, Inc. | COMPASS HEALTH, INC | 301 W Austin Blvd | Nevada 64772 |
Source: HRSA health center service delivery and look-alike sites, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page
Missouri rural health plan
Missouri Transformation of Rural Community Health Care (ToRCH Care) Project
Initiatives, as the state's abstract names them (page 39):
- Regional Coordinating Networks and Hub Activation
- Alternative Payment Models
- Digital backbone
- Rural Health Workforce Programs
- Provider Transformation
CMS says the abstract budgets are illustrative and are not award amounts, so none are shown.
Source: CMS Rural Health Transformation Program state project abstracts, as of December 2025. Publisher page
Neighboring counties
Medicare plans in Vernon County, MO
About this data
County rates are CDC PLACES model-based estimates of adults, built from the CDC BRFSS survey and Census population data. State and US figures are BRFSS survey results for the same year. They are not averages of counties, and small differences may not be meaningful.
Shortage rows are HRSA designations with status Designated. Scores run from 0 to 25 (0 to 26 for dental); a higher score means greater need. Hospitals are acute care and critical accesshospitals CMS lists in the county, with 30-day rates of unplanned readmission. Health centers are active HRSA-funded and look-alike sites.
Rural health plan initiatives are copied as the state wrote them. Nothing here is medical advice.
Source: CDC PLACES county data, as of December 4, 2025. Publisher page
Source: CDC BRFSS prevalence data, as of September 15, 2026. Publisher page
Source: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page