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Characteristics of individuals who identify a regular source of medical care.

J R Lave, L B Lave, S Leinhardt and D Nagin

Having a source where medical services are regularly received is an antecedent to securing high quality medical care; it facilitates access and indicates that the individual is not alienated from the health care delivery system. In this paper we develop models to characterize individuals, both children and adults, who claim a regular source of care. The models are estimated using a logit analysis (since the dependent variable is 0-1) applied to survey data on residents of East Palo Alto, California. These data indicate that in this low-income, predominately black population the most important factor influencing whether a child will have a regular source of medical care is whether the parents have a regular source. For adults, the anticipated need for care (as measured by health status), time in community, and sex were all found to be important. The type of individual least likely to have a regular source of care is a low-income, unmarried male who is in good health and is a recent arrival to the community. The individuals most likely to need easy access to medical care and continuity of care are most likely to have a regular source of care, and vice versa.