Study: Health care safety net plays key role in caring for uninsured children

[CAL/AAEM News Service]

Study: Health care safety net plays key role in caring for uninsured
children

Source: AHA News Now (http://www.ahanews.com) 
Date: March 6, 2006


The availability of health care safety net providers and their capacity to
serve the uninsured play an important role in promoting access to care among
uninsured children, according to a study in the March issue of Pediatrics. The
study by Rand Corp. found fewer than half of uninsured children received any
health care services in the previous year, compared with 80% of insured
children. Rural uninsured children were more likely to receive services if they
lived near safety net providers such as public hospitals, community hospital
emergency departments or federally funded community health centers. Urban
uninsured children were more likely to receive services where safety net
providers received more government funding. Possible measures for ensuring
access to health care among uninsured children include increasing the density
of safety net providers in rural areas, enhancing funding for the safety net,
and policies to increase primary care physician supply, the authors
conclude.


For more information, please visit: 
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/117/3/e509


Cyrus Shahpar & Brian Potts 
Managing Editors, CAL/AAEM News Service
University of California, Irvine

The CAL/AAEM Archives are available at: http://maillists.uci.edu/mailman/public/calaaem/


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