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Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic

BACKGROUND: Adults over 50 have high health care needs but also face high coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related vulnerability. This may result in a reluctance to enter public spaces, including health care settings. Here, we examined factors associated with health care delays among adults over...

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Autores principales: Chan, Athena C Y, Sneed, Rodlescia S
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Oxford University Press 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9452159/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36006299
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glac174
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author Chan, Athena C Y
Sneed, Rodlescia S
author_facet Chan, Athena C Y
Sneed, Rodlescia S
author_sort Chan, Athena C Y
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Adults over 50 have high health care needs but also face high coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related vulnerability. This may result in a reluctance to enter public spaces, including health care settings. Here, we examined factors associated with health care delays among adults over 50 early in the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Using data from the 2020 wave of the Health and Retirement Study (N = 7 615), we evaluated how race/ethnicity, age, geographic region, and pandemic-related factors were associated with health care delays. RESULTS: In our sample, 3 in 10 participants who were interviewed from March 2020 to June 2021 reported delays in medical or dental care in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Non-Hispanic Whites (odds ratio [OR]: 1.37; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.19–1.58) and those of other racial/ethnic backgrounds (OR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.02–1.67) delayed care more than Non-Hispanic Blacks. Other factors associated with delayed care included younger age, living in the Midwest or West, knowing someone diagnosed with or who died from COVID-19, and having high COVID-19-related concerns. There were no differences in care delays among adults aged > 70; however, among those ≤ 70, those who knew someone diagnosed with COVID-19 were more likely to delay care than those who did not. Additionally, among those ≤ 70, Non-Hispanic Whites and those of other racial/ethnic backgrounds delayed care more than Non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics. CONCLUSIONS: There is considerable heterogeneity in care delays among older adults based on age, race/ethnicity, and pandemic-related factors. As the pandemic continues, future studies should examine whether these patterns persist.
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spelling pubmed-94521592022-09-09 Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic Chan, Athena C Y Sneed, Rodlescia S J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci THE JOURNAL OF GERONTOLOGY: Medical Sciences BACKGROUND: Adults over 50 have high health care needs but also face high coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related vulnerability. This may result in a reluctance to enter public spaces, including health care settings. Here, we examined factors associated with health care delays among adults over 50 early in the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Using data from the 2020 wave of the Health and Retirement Study (N = 7 615), we evaluated how race/ethnicity, age, geographic region, and pandemic-related factors were associated with health care delays. RESULTS: In our sample, 3 in 10 participants who were interviewed from March 2020 to June 2021 reported delays in medical or dental care in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Non-Hispanic Whites (odds ratio [OR]: 1.37; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.19–1.58) and those of other racial/ethnic backgrounds (OR: 1.31; 95% CI: 1.02–1.67) delayed care more than Non-Hispanic Blacks. Other factors associated with delayed care included younger age, living in the Midwest or West, knowing someone diagnosed with or who died from COVID-19, and having high COVID-19-related concerns. There were no differences in care delays among adults aged > 70; however, among those ≤ 70, those who knew someone diagnosed with COVID-19 were more likely to delay care than those who did not. Additionally, among those ≤ 70, Non-Hispanic Whites and those of other racial/ethnic backgrounds delayed care more than Non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics. CONCLUSIONS: There is considerable heterogeneity in care delays among older adults based on age, race/ethnicity, and pandemic-related factors. As the pandemic continues, future studies should examine whether these patterns persist. Oxford University Press 2022-08-25 /pmc/articles/PMC9452159/ /pubmed/36006299 http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glac174 Text en © The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com. https://academic.oup.com/pages/standard-publication-reuse-rightsThis article is published and distributed under the terms of the Oxford University Press, Standard Journals Publication Model (https://academic.oup.com/pages/standard-publication-reuse-rights)
spellingShingle THE JOURNAL OF GERONTOLOGY: Medical Sciences
Chan, Athena C Y
Sneed, Rodlescia S
Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_fullStr Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full_unstemmed Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_short Factors Associated With Health Care Delays Among Adults Over 50 During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_sort factors associated with health care delays among adults over 50 during the covid-19 pandemic
topic THE JOURNAL OF GERONTOLOGY: Medical Sciences
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9452159/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36006299
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glac174
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