Dear AJPM Reader,
The pandemic has highlighted the importance of access to clinical preventive care, with many of the population disparities seen in COVID-19 outcomes reflecting similar inequalities in access to routine preventive care.
Several articles in our October 2021 issue address gaps in preventive care. In an especially relevant study, Tong and colleagues found that patients who attended wellness visits were up to date with 80% of recommended services 3 months post-visit, but only 1 in 200 were up to date with all recommended services.
However, not everyone gets to their provider, with about 1 in 7 U.S. adults experiencing difficulties accessing medical care, according to a study by Al Rifai and colleagues. This figure rises to 1 in 4 among people within clusters of sociodemographic characteristics including younger age, lower income or education, or living in a state without Medicaid expansion.
Finally, Kawai and Kawai found that racial disparities in adult vaccine uptake have persisted over the past decade, with rates of influenza vaccination coverage around 10 percentage points lower among Black and Hispanic U.S. adults than among White and Asian ones.
The onset of the pandemic led to steep declines in people accessing routine screenings and other preventive care. These studies, all using pre-pandemic data, make clear that the difficulties accessing care were present for many even prior to COVID-19. Going forward, it is vital to ensure that all people everywhere can access the preventive care to realize long and healthy lives.
We hope you find these articles, as well as the rest of our October 2021 issue, to be timely, topical, and informative.
Yours in prevention and health,
