Preventive care in the United States: are blacks finally catching up?
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate rates of preventive care among Blacks in specific demographic categories, such as age, income, gender, and Caribbean descent.


METHODS
Data from the Commonwealth Fund 2001 Health Care Quality Survey, conducted from April through November 2001, which involved telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 6,722 adults age 18 and older living in the continental United States. Analysis focuses on the subset of Black respondents in comparison to Whites and Hispanics (n=5678).


METHODS
Rates of preventive care including primary care visits, cholesterol and blood pressure screening, diabetes care, and cancer screening.


RESULTS
Blacks have rates of preventive care comparable to those of Whites, with higher rates for some services. Overall, Blacks did better than Hispanics for most of the preventive measures studied. An evaluation of specific demographic subgroups of Blacks shows that certain populations, such as men and the uninsured, have lower rates of some preventive care measures. For example, Black men are less likely to report having a physical exam than Black women (odds ratio [OR] 0.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.37-0.77) as well as less likely to report blood pressure screening in the prior year (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.34-0.98).


CONCLUSIONS
While high levels of mortality persist, Blacks fare relatively well in terms of selected preventive care services. Although focus on prevention is still a key concern, evaluating other causes of increased mortality, including differences in follow-up, referral, and quality of care, is also important.
Blanchard
Janice
J
George Washington University Department of Emergency Medicine, NW, Washington DC 20037, USA. jblanchard@mfa.gwu.edu
Lurie
Nicole
N
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control; D011314:Preventive Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data