Would Safety-Net Expansions Offset Reduced Access Resulting from Lost Insurance Coverage? Race/Ethnicity Differences

November/December 2006
Health Affairs, Vol. 25, No. 6
Jack Hadley, Peter J. Cunningham, J. Lee Hargraves

This study simulated whether increased community health center (CHC) funding under the Bush administration narrowed racial/ethnic gaps in access to care among low-income people. Expanded CHC funding resulted in small increases in access to care, more so for minorities than for whites. Spanish-speaking Hispanics had the largest improvements in access in the simulation. However, minorities experienced bigger drops in insurance coverage. The net result was no improvements in the access measures for Spanish-speaking Hispanics and slight decreases in access for whites, English-speaking Hispanics and African Americans. Access gaps either remained the same or worsened slightly for English-speaking Hispanics and African Americans relative to whites.

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