Utah
Urban-rural health disparities are widening, but in Utah, access remains the challenge
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has documented a widening divide in preventable early deaths between urban and rural areas. In 1999, the death rate in rural areas was 7% higher than in urban areas. It was 20% higher in 2019.
The study looked at deaths from the top five leading causes in the U.S.: cancer, heart disease, stroke, unintentional injuries (including drug overdoses) and chronic lower respiratory disease. COVID-19 was among the top five causes of death for some of the study period but was not included.
The number of preventable deaths was calculated by comparing the average mortality rate for people under 80 with each condition in the three states with the lowest mortality. Deaths above that rate were considered preventable early deaths.
According to the study’s lead author, Macarena C. Garcia, “preventable early deaths from heart disease were consistently higher in rural counties before COVID-19, and the disparities widened between the most rural county category and suburban counties.”
The CDC attributes part of this disparity to age as rural populations are older on average than urban ones. Still, they wrote that “differences in social circumstances, socioeconomic characteristics, health-related behaviors, and access to health care services affect mortality and potentially contribute to approximately half of all preventable premature deaths.”
In Utah, a large barrier to health access in rural areas is recruiting. DeAnn Brown, director of Garfield Memorial Hospital in Panguitch, Utah, said her hospital “just had one of our physicians who was going to retire. We figure it’s going to take us probably at least 18 months, if not longer, to find somebody with the qualifications.”
Because of staffing, the hospital had to cancel its mobile clinic this summer. In previous years it went to remote areas to treat patients who live more than an hour away from the hospital.
When it comes to getting specialty care, transportation is even more of a challenge in remote areas. Garfield Memorial can’t provide it, so “those people who live out in Escalante or Boulder would have to travel probably to Cedar City, which is about two to 2.5 hours for them. If they go to St. George, they’re adding another hour or so. That would be the closest specialist.”
The hospital in Garfield County already provides – and hopes to expand access to – telehealth. That allows patients to see a doctor for smaller issues from their homes without a long trip to a clinic. Still, Brown said in those contexts “it’s difficult if a physician or provider needs to put hands on a patient–look in their ears or listen to their heart.”
And, she said, people just don’t come in and get help when they need it. Sometimes that’s because of severe economic struggles – and a lot of people don’t have insurance.
Other times, it’s a cultural thing.
“They’re just kind of a tough kind of population and put up with stuff and, and learn to get by when maybe they should seek help.”
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In a victory at the Utah Democratic Party Convention, Dr. Kent Stewart Udell has secured the Democratic nomination for Utah’s 3rd Congressional District. His message, he said, centered on integrity, science, practical solutions and bridging political divides.
Udell will spend the coming months meeting with voters across the district via listening sessions, town halls and community service projects. He will be in Park City Monday, and his first road tour will be in Southern Utah May 8-18.
“I’m both honored and humbled by the faith the delegates have placed in my candidacy” said Udell. “Our goal is to run a creative, energetic campaign that excites Democratic voters, engages new voters, and offers a place for disillusioned Independents, Libertarians, and Republicans to land. I entered this race because I feel what so many Americans are feeling right now — the grief and frustration of watching too many leaders lose sight of their commitments to the Constitution, the rule of law, and to a nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. We deserve better. We need a representative who honors those commitments and stands up for truth, integrity, competence, and compassion.”
Udell, an engineer, scientist and educator with a history of working on water and land remediation problems, will now shift his campaign to the general election. He said he is focused on addressing the issues that matter most to Utah families, including cost of living, water security, protecting public lands and restoring accountability in Washington.
With data centers moving front and center in Utah politics including in CD3, Udell said he is calling for an immediate moratorium:
“Utah cannot afford data centers, especially without transparency and public input. In a desert state, water is life. It belongs to our communities, our farms, our families and our future, not to the highest bidder. Putting profit over people cannot continue to be the ‘Utah way.’ At some point, it will devour all of us.”
As the general election season begins, Udell emphasized his commitment to earning the support of all voters, regardless of party.
“You don’t have to agree with me on everything to know that I’ll show up, listen and work hard for you,” Udell added. “Utah deserves a representative who is accountable to the people here, not to political parties or special interests.”
Udell has promised not to accept donations from corporations or corporate PACS.
“When you take money from corporations you inevitably owe them favors and special backroom deals,” said Udell’s campaign manager, Cherise Udell. “Our campaign is powered by the people for the people, and they are the ones Kent will represent. This should be the case for all elected officials.”
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WEST JORDAN, Utah (KUTV) — A 25-year-old motorcyclist was killed in a crash after colliding with a vehicle in West Jordan.
According to the West Jordan Police Department, the crash happened Sunday evening at Banquet Avenue and Cougar Lane. Officers responded to reports of the crash just after 8:10 p.m.
When first responders arrived, they attempted life-saving measures, but the motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene.
Officials said the driver of the vehicle remained at the scene and cooperated with the investigation. They were not transported to a hospital.
All northbound and southbound traffic between 6400 South and 6600 South was closed on Cougar Lane. Traffic on Banquet Avenue approaching Cougar Lane was also closed.
The cause of the crash is under investigation.
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DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT, Utah and Colorado, May 3, 2026 (Gephardt Daily) — There’s still time to swing by the Quarry Exhibit Hall parking lot at Dinosaur National Monument and see paleontologists in action.
“The team reopened the dig they began last fall during the parking lot repaving project—where they initially uncovered nearly 3,000 pounds of fossils,” a DNM social media post says.
“When they returned this spring, the discoveries kept coming. In addition to lots of Diplodocus tail vertebrae, a beautifully preserved Camptosaurus toe claw and a striking Allosaurus tooth were also found! These finds offer an exciting peek into the Late Jurassic world that once filled this landscape.”
Diplodocus could grow to about 80 feet long, and stood 13 feet tall at the hip, according to the National Park Service and other online sites. It weighed about 22,000 to 35,000 pounds, and traveled in small herds. It was a plant eater.
Allosaurus (Utah’s state fossil) were about 28 feet long, stood about 10 to 15 feet tall, and weighed about 3,300 to 5,500 pounds. They were meat eaters, and could run about 19 to 34 miles an hour. The average human sprint is about 15–20 mph, according to online sources.
The Camptosaurus was 16 to 24 feet long, and typically stood about 6 feet tall at the hip, and weighed 1,100 to 2,200 pounds. It was a plant eater.
All three dino varieties lived in the late Jurassic period, about 161 to 145 million years ago.
“Come witness this incredible work before the dig wraps up!,” the Dinosaur National Monument social media post says.
Dinosaur National Monument is located in eastern Utah and western Colorado, with fossil displays on the Utah side.
Photo: Dinosaur National Monument
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