Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Disparities in Health Care Access and Use Among U.S. Adults With Serious Psychological Distress

Abstract

More research is needed on health care utilization among adults with serious psychological distress. In this group, whites and those with private coverage reported poor utilization, compared with other racial-ethnic groups and those with Medicaid, respectively.

Serious psychological distress and daily cannabis use, 2008 to 2016: Potential implications for mental health?

“…Items were measured on a 5-point Likert scale (0= "none of the time", 4 = "all of the time") and responses were summed across the six items (range = 0-24). Scores of 13 or greater were classified as indicating SPD consistent with other research (Cook et al, 2014;Lawrence and Williams, 2016;Weissman et al, 2015Weissman et al, , 2018. Respondents were then classified into one of two non-overlapping groups: 1) Past-month SPD -respondents who met criteria for SPD in the past month, and 2) No SPD -respondents who did not meet criteria for SPD in the past month.…”

Disparities in Medical Debt Among U.S. Adults with Serious Psychological Distress

“…However, cost-and debt-related barriers to accessing health care are not evenly distributed and several studies suggest that people with serious psychological distress (SPD) have greater difficulty accessing needed health care. 14,15 Many of the available studies on medical debts assess care seeking and persistent debts among people who have survived cancer, with the preponderance of evidence suggesting that cancer survivorship is associated with persistent financial hardship and medical debts. [16][17][18] Additional studies have examined the odds of filing for bankruptcy after debilitating spinal cord injuries, 19 the relationship between personal debt and suicidal ideation, 20 and the relationship between medical debt and use of payday loans.…”

“…23,24 Furthermore, having health insurance may decrease anxiety among low-income urban women. 25 The literature suggests that individuals with SPD have higher utilization of physical health care services than those without SPD, 14,15,26 and this includes higher numbers of emergency department visits 27 and poorer health outcomes after surgery. 28 Although health services utilization are necessary for individuals with SPD, it may be that their high levels of utilization and poorer outcomes after interventions drive high spending and medical debts.…”

The medical home functions of primary care practices that care for adults with psychological distress: a cross-sectional study

“…The results of this failure to adopt medical home functions in the South may be contributing to delays in care as persons with PD in the South have been found to be more likely to delay care than persons with PD living in other regions. This is especially notable because the highest proportion of white and black persons with PD live in the South [47]. Results of our study suggest the importance of regulation to promote the adoption of medical home functions.…”