You are here

Barriers to health care access among the elderly and who perceives them.

TitleBarriers to health care access among the elderly and who perceives them.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2004
AuthorsFitzpatrick, AL, Powe, NR, Cooper, LS, Ives, DG, Robbins, JA
JournalAm J Public Health
Volume94
Issue10
Pagination1788-94
Date Published2004 Oct
ISSN0090-0036
KeywordsAged, Aged, 80 and over, Chi-Square Distribution, Female, Health Behavior, Health Services Accessibility, Humans, Logistic Models, Male, Medicare, Patients, Surveys and Questionnaires, United States
Abstract<p><b>OBJECTIVES: </b>We evaluated self-perceived access to health care in a cohort of Medicare beneficiaries.</p><p><b>METHODS: </b>We identified patterns of use and barriers to health care from self-administered questionnaires collected during the 1993-1994 annual examination of the Cardiovascular Health Study.</p><p><b>RESULTS: </b>The questionnaires were completed by 4889 (91.1%) participants, with a mean age of 76.0 years. The most common barriers to seeing a physician were the doctor's lack of responsiveness to patient concerns, medical bills, transportation, and street safety. Low income, no supplemental insurance, older age, and female gender were independently related to perceptions of barriers. Race was not significant after adjustment for other factors.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS: </b>Psychological and physical barriers affect access to care among the elderly; these may be influenced by poverty more than by race.</p>
DOI10.2105/ajph.94.10.1788
Alternate JournalAm J Public Health
PubMed ID15451751
PubMed Central IDPMC1448535
Grant ListN01 HC015103 / HC / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States
N01-HC-85086 / HC / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States
N01HC85086 / HL / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States
N01-HC-85079 / HC / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States
N01HC85079 / HL / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States
N01 HC035129 / HC / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States