Missing Millions · 2026 estimate

Nebraska is missing 62,000 lung cancer screenings.

About 1 in 10 adults ages 50 to 80 in Nebraska qualifies for lung cancer screening and hasn't been screened. Find your county below.

81,200adults qualify for screening under USPSTF 2021 criteria (estimate)
23.6%were screened, 8th of 51 (American Lung Association, 2025); 18.2% nationally
4,322low-dose CT screening scans billed to Medicare fee-for-service by Nebraska providers in 2024

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates 2025; CDC PLACES 2025; USPSTF 2021; American Lung Association, State of Lung Cancer 2025; CMS Medicare Physician and Other Practitioners 2024 (CPT 71271). Modeled estimates; see methodology below.

The gap, county by county

Shade shows how many adults ages 50 to 80 are missing screening. Select a county.

Douglas County

17,200

missing lung cancer screenings (estimate)

  • Qualify for screening22,600
  • Adults 50 to 80 missing screening1 in 10
  • Medicare low-dose CT scans, 20241,479
Open the Douglas County page

Every Nebraska county, ranked

Ranked by estimated missing screenings. Select a column to sort.
1Douglas County17,20022,6001 in 101,479
2Lancaster County8,50011,1001 in 11933
3Sarpy County4,9006,5001 in 12306
4Hall County2,1002,7001 in 9441
5Lincoln County1,4001,8001 in 9245
6Dodge County1,4001,8001 in 9182
7Buffalo County1,3001,8001 in 11120
8Scotts Bluff County1,3001,7001 in 90
9Madison County1,2001,6001 in 90
10Platte County1,2001,5001 in 10166
11Adams County1,0001,4001 in 10330
12Cass County1,0001,3001 in 100
13Gage County9701,3001 in 80
14Dawson County8401,1001 in 90
15Saunders County8201,1001 in 100
16Washington County7209401 in 110
17Dakota County6708701 in 90
18Otoe County5907701 in 100
19Seward County5507201 in 110
20York County5206801 in 90
21Saline County4806401 in 90
22Box Butte County4105401 in 90
23Custer County4005201 in 90
24Cheyenne County4005201 in 90
25Red Willow County4005201 in 90
26Holt County3905101 in 90
27Knox County3704901 in 80
28Keith County3604701 in 914
29Colfax County3604601 in 90
30Richardson County3404501 in 80
31Phelps County3404401 in 90
32Butler County3204301 in 90
33Merrick County3204201 in 90
34Cuming County3204101 in 100
35Hamilton County3104101 in 110
36Burt County3104001 in 90
37Jefferson County3003901 in 90
38Cedar County2903801 in 110
39Pierce County2603401 in 100
40Thurston County2603401 in 60
41Nemaha County2603401 in 90
42Antelope County2503301 in 90
43Howard County2503201 in 100
44Clay County2403201 in 90
45Wayne County2403101 in 110
46Dawes County2303001 in 110
47Dixon County2303001 in 90
48Cherry County2303001 in 90
49Fillmore County2202901 in 90
50Kearney County2202901 in 110
51Boone County2202901 in 90
52Sheridan County2202801 in 90
53Thayer County2202801 in 90
54Johnson County2102801 in 80
55Polk County2102701 in 100
56Stanton County2102701 in 100
57Furnas County2002601 in 90
58Morrill County1902501 in 80
59Kimball County1802301 in 80
60Nuckolls County1702201 in 100
61Valley County1602101 in 90
62Nance County1502001 in 80
63Chase County1401801 in 90
64Webster County1401801 in 90
65Franklin County1301701 in 80
66Harlan County1301701 in 90
67Sherman County1301701 in 90
68Brown County1201601 in 90
69Pawnee County1101501 in 80
70Hitchcock County1101501 in 90
71Perkins County1001401 in 100
72Garden County1001301 in 80
73Deuel County901201 in 90
74Greeley County901201 in 90
75Frontier County901201 in 100
76Boyd County801101 in 90
77Gosper County801001 in 100
78Dundy County701001 in 90
79Garfield County60801 in 110
80Sioux County60801 in 8106
81Rock County50701 in 100
82Keya Paha Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100
83Hayes Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 90
84Wheeler Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100
85Hooker Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 90
86Banner Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100
87Loup Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100
88Thomas Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 110
89Logan Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 110
90Blaine Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 90
91Grant Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100
92Arthur Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 90
93McPherson Countyfewer than 50fewer than 501 in 100

Lung cancer in Nebraska

Each year, on average. Screening finds lung cancer early, when it is most treatable.

Diagnosed

1,215 a year

New lung and bronchus cancers, 2019 to 2023 average.

Found late

55% at a late stage

About 667 a year are found after the cancer has spread, when it is hardest to treat.

Deaths

704 a year

Lung cancer deaths, 2020 to 2024 average.

Source: National Cancer Institute and CDC, State Cancer Profiles. Counts under 16 a year are suppressed by NCI and not shown.

Health systems in Nebraska

14 health systems serve Nebraska counties. Each has a page with its service area, lung cancer data and screening today.

Browse health systems in the Lung Screening Atlas

Methodology

How we estimate the gap

A modeled estimate from public data only. It is not a count of patients and contains no patient information.

missing = adults 50 to 80 × county smoking rate × national eligibility factor × (1 − state screening rate)

  • Adults 50 to 80: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates, Vintage 2025
  • Smoking: CDC PLACES 2025 release (Kentucky and Pennsylvania: 2024 release)
  • Eligibility: USPSTF 2021 criteria, scaled to about 14.5 million eligible adults nationally
  • Screening rates: American Lung Association, State of Lung Cancer 2025
  • Who is missing: Census population estimates (age) and American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 (language)
  • Screening activity: CMS Medicare fee-for-service claims for low-dose CT (CPT 71271), 2024, by provider location
  • Lung cancer cases and deaths: National Cancer Institute and CDC, State Cancer Profiles (incidence 2019 to 2023, deaths 2020 to 2024)
  • Smoking history: University of Minnesota National Lung Cancer Screening Estimates (Haynes 2026)

Estimates under 50 are shown as "fewer than 50"; others are rounded. Full methodology

Many of them are already your patients.

Oatmeal Health helps health systems and community health centers find, navigate, and screen the people who qualify, alongside the care teams you already have.

Find my missing patients Explore your screening network