Capsule Commentary on Okunrintemi et al., Association of Income Disparities with Patient Reported Healthcare Experience

Excerpt

Okunrintemi’s¹ analysis of 2010–2013 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data on income-related disparities in experiences with the healthcare system is an important contribution to the literature. The finding of worse access to care, delays in care, and dissatisfaction with the care received by low-income individuals is certainly not surprising but should nonetheless be alarming given the current retreat on recent healthcare reforms designed to enhance equity in the delivery and receipt of care in the USA. The authors’ findings were fairly similar across racial and ethnic groups when adjusted for income (figure e1) but the income disparities in healthcare experience were accentuated by lack of health insurance (figure e2). …