David Peters, associate professor of sociology and rural extension sociologist in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, had his study, “Community Susceptibility and Resiliency to COVID-19 Across the Rural-Urban Continuum in the United States,” in the June 16, 2020, online edition of Rural Health.
In this study, Peters created a COVID‐19 susceptibility scale at the county level, described its components and then assessed the health and socioeconomic resiliency of susceptible places across the rural‐urban continuum.
Peters found that there is an immediate need to know specific types of susceptibilities and vulnerabilities ahead of time to allow local and state health officials to plan and allocate resources accordingly. In rural areas it is essential to shelter‐in‐place vulnerable populations, whereas in large metropolitan areas general closure orders are needed to stop community spread. Pandemic response plans should address vulnerabilities.