PHOM Indicator Profile Report of Cost as a Barrier to Health Care

Why Is This Important?

Access to health care is still a problem for many Utahns. Individuals who cannot obtain needed health care tend to have higher rates of death and disability from chronic disease. Cost is the most commonly reported barrier to getting needed health care.

Data Notes

Age adjusted to U.S. 2000 standard population. U.S. data are the average for all states and the District of Columbia but do not include the U.S. territories. Note: At the time of this update, the BRFSS U.S. dataset did not include an age variable but did include five age categories up to age 80+ (vs. the typical weighting scheme that includes 85+). Comparisons with both weighting schemes were compared using Utah data, and the difference was about 1/100 of a percentage point. **This question was not asked in 2001 or 2002. The data in this graph include estimates from the old landline-only methodology, and from the new methodology that includes both landline and cell phone respondent interviews along with a new weighting methodology called iterative proportional fitting, or raking. More details about these changes can be found at: [https://ibis.utah.gov/ibisph-view/pdf/opha/resource/brfss/RakingImpact2011.pdf].

How Are We Doing?

The age-adjusted percentage of Utah adults who reported being unable to see a doctor in the past 12 months due to cost was 11.6% in 2022. The percentage (crude rate) was the highest for adults aged 18-24 (17.7%) and lowest for Utah adults aged 65 and older (3.1%). In 2022, Utah adults with low incomes had a higher age-adjusted rate (24.4%) of reporting cost as a barrier to health care than those with higher incomes (5.2%), as did those without health insurance (42.0%) versus the insured (9.4%).

What Is Being Done?

The Utah Department of Health and Human Services administers programs to improve access to care, such as Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), UPP (Utah's Premium Partnership for Health Insurance), primary care grants, and clinics for children with disabilities. Local health departments provide preventive services such as immunizations and screenings at low or no cost to eligible persons who cannot afford them. Members of the Association for Utah Community Health (AUCH), including Federally Qualified Health Centers and other providers, strive to meet the needs of the medically underserved in Utah.