Relation between race and ethnicity, a usual source of care and receipt of preventive services

Objective: Previous research and demonstrated a strong association between a usual source of care and health care use among middle-aged and older adults with disabilities. Race and ethnicity may moderate this relation. Methods: We pool Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) data for 2001-2007 to examine the relation between race, ethnicity and reporting a usual source of care (i.e., none, a place, and provider) among middle-aged and older adults. We then examine the relation between a usual source of care and receipt of preventive services, and the extent to which race and ethnicity moderate this relation. Findings: We found both Black and Hispanic adults to have a significantly higher relative risk of reporting a place as a usual source of care. The relative risk was significantly higher for older relative to middle-aged Blacks with disabilities. We found a consistent effect of a usual source of care on receipt of preventive services for both middle-aged and older adults. The effect of a usual source of care was stronger for older adults and there was some evidence of moderating effects of race and ethnicity for certain preventive services. Implications: Enhancing access to a provider as a usual source of care will likely have important health benefits for minority middle-aged and older adults.