Examining disparities for women with disabilities in accessing health care due to cost

Background/Significance: According to Healthy People 2010, one of the leading health indicators is access to health care. Additionally, Healthy People 2010 lists promoting the health of people with disabilities, preventing the onset of secondary conditions, and eliminating health disparities between people with disabilities and people without disabilities in the United States as important issues. Objective/Purpose: This presentation examines disparities in health care for women with disabilities due to cost in the United States using data from the 2005 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Methods: Comparisons in access to health care were made between women with disabilities compared to women without disabilities, and men with and without disabilities using chi square analysis. Regression analysis was also used to look at how disability affects a women's access to health care. Demographic factors such as age, education, race/ethnicity, marital status and employment were also examined regarding their influence on access to health care. Results: Statistically significant differences were found in access to health care due to cost for women with disabilities when compared to other populations. Disability was found to be a significant factor with regard to access to health care for women with disabilities. Discussion/Conclusions: These results add to previous studies which show that access to health care is an issue not only for women, but especially for vulnerable populations such as women with disabilities. Increased effort must be made to provide access to women who face multiple barriers in order to ensure elimination of these disparities and secondary conditions.