[Access to Health Insurance]

Abstract

To isolate and examine the consequences of insurance coverage, we can study how insurance impacts a patient’s access to medical information and treatment. Although we most often think of medicine in terms of intervention (i.e. seeing a doctor or getting a prescription after falling ill) we interact with the healthcare system in a variety of ways. In the U.S. healthcare includes health education and preventative medicine. Public education provides most individuals with basic information regarding hygiene and healthy living. After childhood, the amount of knowledge which adults access regarding disease may vary based upon insurance status. Likewise, a patient’s access to preventative treatment and screening procedures may change depending upon insurance coverage. We can study the overall impact of health insurance status on the individual by considering the availability of healthcare services at each of these levels: education, screening for early diagnosis, and treatment. [From introductory section]