What is the Goldsmith Modification?
The Goldsmith Modification was developed because of the need to identify small towns and rural areas within large metropolitan counties. Some of these communities were isolated from central areas with health services because of distance or other physical features. This variation expanded the eligibility for Rural Health Grant programs to assist isolated rural populations in large metropolitan counties. The Goldsmith Modification preceded the RUCA methodology. For more information about the Goldsmith Modification see the Office of Rural Health Policy’s paper titled, Improving the Operational Definition of “Rural Areas” for Federal Programs.
