Racial Disparities in Use of Chiropractic Services by Medicare Beneficiaries Aged 65 to 99 in Los Angeles County, California.
Racial and ethnic disparities in utilization of chiropractic services have been described at the state level, but little is known about such local disparities. We analyzed Medicare data for the year 2008 to evaluate by ZIP code for utilization of chiropractic services among older adults in Los Angeles County, California. We evaluated for availability and use of chiropractic services by racial/ethnic category, quantified geographic variations by coefficient of variation, and mapped utilization by selected racial/ethnic categories. Among 7502 beneficiaries who used chiropractic services, 72% were white, 12% Asian, 1% black, 1% Hispanic, and 14% other/unknown. Variation in the number of beneficiaries per ZIP code who used chiropractic services was highest among Hispanics, blacks, and Asians. We found evidence of racial disparities in use of chiropractic services at the local level in Los Angeles County. Older blacks and Hispanics in Los Angeles County may be underserved with regard to chiropractic care.
Southern California University of Health Sciences, Whittier, CA, USA The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, Lebanon, NH, USA jameswhedon@scuhs.edu.
James M
JM
Whedon
Southern California University of Health Sciences, Whittier, CA, USA.
Melissa N
MN
Kimura
Southern California University of Health Sciences, Whittier, CA, USA.
Reed B
RB
Phillips
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002140:California / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D026882:Manipulation, Chiropractic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006278:Medicare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D044469:Racial Groups / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014481:United States
Medicare; chiropractic; disparities