Access to Health Care

A. Area of interest

Access to healthcare

B. Long-term outcome statement

The low-income working poor, the uninsured and underinsured, the elderly, minorities, pregnant teens, the homeless, the disabled, the mentally ill and those needing treatment for substance abuse and other underserved populations will obtain affordable ongoing primary health care, dental, vision, and mental health care with regularly scheduled preventive checkups and screenings as well as substance abuse treatment and prescription assistance.

Recommendation

A Stark County Health Care Collaborative consisting of all health departments, all free clinics, all federally qualified health centers, all hospitals, all social service agencies that provide healthcare assistance, the Area Agency on Aging, Head Start, physicians, dentists, pharmacists, colleges and universities, foundations, churches, healthcare insurers, and pharmaceutical company representatives will be formed to:

develop a continuum of care
develop and implement strategies to educate consumers and providers about health care opportunities, resources, and best practices
increase the proportion of individuals from vulnerable populations who visit doctors’ offices, clinics or health centers for regularly scheduled preventive checkups and screenings
increase the number of eligible children who are enrolled in Healthy Start/Medicaid
increase the proportion of pregnant women who begin prenatal primary care in the first trimester of pregnancy

C. Rationale

More than 41 million Americans do not visit doctors’ offices, clinics, or health centers for ongoing primary care. Persons 18 to 24 years of age, individuals below the poverty level, and minorities are most likely to not have a usual source of primary care. As a result, the emergency room, the most expensive form of service delivery, often becomes the source of care for these populations.

Access to health care is one of ten leading health indicators identified in Healthy People 2010. Health insurance, a higher income level, a regular primary care provider (or other source of ongoing health care), and use of clinical preventive services are valid predictors of quality access to health care.

Healthy People 2010 lists the following objectives to measure progress toward providing access:

increase the proportion of persons with health insurance
increase the proportion of persons who have a specific source of ongoing care
increase the proportion of pregnant women who begin prenatal primary care in the first trimester of pregnancy

The Stark Poll conducted in 2007 found that health care and health insurance coverage was a growing concern among the residents of Stark County. Lack of insurance, or insufficient insurance, is a barrier to many who seek appropriate health care. Increasing numbers of uninsured/underinsured individuals is also a challenge to providers. Ohio Department of Health data for Stark County shows that the following rates are high and require attention:

rate of the population that is uninsured
number of children enrolled in Healthy Start/Medicaid
total number of enrollees in Medicaid
number of Medicaid births

The following barriers can limit access to health care:

Structural barriers including a lack of primary care providers or appropriate facilities
Personal barriers such as a lack of knowledge about what to do or when to seek care or a limited ability to communicate
Issues regarding confidentiality or discrimination.

Recommendation: Access to Health Care

Access to Health Care