Role of Cardiovascular Risk Factor Screening in Stimulating Medicare Preventive Services Use

A low-income population was surveyed to investigate barriers to receiving healthcare and provided free cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor screenings to determine whether this would subsequently increase the use of Medicare preventive services. African-American and Hispanic women and men residing in Washington, DC, who relied solely on Medicare for their healthcare insurance, were the studied population. Of the 206 people who participated in the CVD screening process, 51 met the study's eligibility criteria and completed the health usage survey. Cost, access, transportation, communication with doctors, and comprehension regarding medication instructions were not reported as problems and therefore do not appear to be barriers to controlling CVD risk factors in this population. Of the 51 eligible participants, 47 responded to a follow-up survey regarding their ensuing use of preventive services. Nearly half of these Medicare-only respondents stated that they had an appointment with their physician in the 2 months following the free CVD screenings, suggesting these free screenings stimulated health-seeking behavior. The traditional barriers to healthcare described in the literature were of little consequence. Instead, a feeling of good health as well as a lack of knowledge about the availability of preventive health services seem to be the main factors stopping this population from accessing Medicare preventive services. We conclude, instead of focusing on removal of traditional barriers to medical care, that free screening and more education about the nature of CVD risk factors and prevention services will promote health-seeking behavior.