Health Care System Factors for Disability Prevalence

Health Care System Factors

The aging population in Utah is likely to lead to an increase in the prevalence of disabilities that can have dramatic consequences in terms of health care expenditures. Access to health care is still a problem for many Utahns. Individuals who cannot obtain needed health care tend to have higher rates of death and disability from chronic disease. Cost is the most commonly reported barrier to getting needed health care. Adults with a disability were much more likely to report that they were unable to get needed medical care due to cost compared to those without a disability (27.7% compared to 9.2%, respectively). People with disabilities are significantly less likely to report receiving preventive screenings or to have visited a dentist in the past year. See [https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityandhealth/dhds/index.html] for data on people with disabilities in Utah.