Health Care Disparities in Race-Ethnic Minority Communities and Populations: Does the Availability of Health Care Providers Play a Role?

OBJECTIVES: To examine disparities in use and access to different health care providers by community and individual race-ethnicity and to test provider supply as a potential mediator. DATA SOURCES: National secondary data from 2014 Medical Expenditures Panel Survey, 5-year estimates (2010-2014) from American Community Survey and 2014 InfoUSA. STUDY DESIGN: Multiple logistic regression models examined the association of community and individual race-ethnicity with reported health care visits and access. Mediation analyses tested the role of provider supply. DATA EXTRACTION METHODS: Individual-level survey data were linked to race-ethnic composition and health business counts of the respondent’s primary care service area (PCSA) PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Minority PCSAs are significantly and independently associated with lower odds of having a visit to a physician assistant/nurse practitioner, dentist, or other health professionals and having a usual care provider (all p