Receipt of preventive care among adults: insurance status and usual source of care.
OBJECTIVE
This study ascertained the separate and combined effects of having insurance and a usual source of care on receiving preventive services.


METHODS
Descriptive and multivariate analyses of 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data were conducted.


RESULTS
Receipt of preventive services was strongly associated with insurance and a usual source of care. Significant differences were found between insured adults with a usual source of care, who were most likely to have received services, compared with uninsured adults without regular care, who were least likely to have received services. Those with either a usual source of care or insurance had intermediate levels of preventive services.


CONCLUSIONS
Having a usual source of care and health insurance are both important to achieving national prevention goals.
Department of Family Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
Jennifer E
JE
DeVoe
George E
GE
Fryer
Robert
R
Phillips
Larry
L
Green
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007348:Insurance, Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011314:Preventive Health Services / Q000145:classification / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014481:United States