title: Access to medical care: how do women in Canada and the United States compare?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study is to determine if access to medical care and utilization of cancer screenings differs between women in the United States and Canada. This study examined this question by comparing women in Canada to women in the United States who have insurance coverage and those who do not.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study used data from the 2002/03 Joint Canada United States Survey of Health and examined access to medical care and cancer screenings. A binary probit model was used to address several measures of access to medical care and cancer screening utilization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This study finds five significant differences between insured American and Canadian women. Canadian women are better off in terms of ever having a mammogram, having a regular doctor, and having access to needed medicine, but fare worse in terms of having had a recent mammogram and having perceived unmet healthcare needs. With the exception of having recent mammograms, there is no statistical difference between uninsured and insured American women.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although this study does not show that one group is strictly better off, it does show that there are significant differences between the two groups of women.
authors: Penn State Harrisburg, School of Public Affairs, Middletown, PA 17057, USA. kjb44@psu.edu
authors: Karen
authors: K
authors: Buhr
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002170:Canada; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D019458:Insurance Coverage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008327:Mammography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017057:Medically Uninsured / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D014481:United States; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014626:Vaginal Smears / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*