In 2004, almost 51 million people, or 17.3 percent
of the population, lived in an area considered to be non-metropolitan.
The number of areas defined as metropolitan changes frequently
as the population grows and people move. Residents of non-metropolitan
areas tend to be older, complete fewer years of education,
have public insurance or no health insurance, and live farther
from health care resources than their metropolitan counterparts.
Women in metropolitan areas also tend to have
higher household incomes. In 2004, 12.1 percent
of women in metropolitan areas reported family
incomes of less than 100 percent of the Federal
poverty level (FPL), compared to 14.7 percent of
women in non-metropolitan areas. For women
with family incomes of 100–199 percent of the
FPL, the rates were 17.8 and 23.6 percent,
respectively. Women in metropolitan areas were
more likely than women in non-metropolitan
areas to report incomes of 400 percent or more of
the FPL (39.5 versus 28.5 percent, respectively).
Women in non-metropolitan areas generally
have access to fewer health care resources. In
addition, they are also less likely to report being
in good health. In 2004, 56.7 percent of women
in metropolitan areas reported being in excellent
or very good health, compared to 51.7 percent of
women in non-metropolitan areas. Likewise,
metropolitan women were less likely to report
having fair or poor health.
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VERTICAL BAR CHART: Women Aged 18 and Older, by Area of Residence, and Poverty Status, 2004
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VERTICAL BAR CHART: Self-Reported Health Status of Women Aged 18 and Older, by Area of Residence, 2004
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