Access to medical care reported by Asians and Pacific Islanders in a West Coast Physician Group Association

This study examines access to medical care for Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States, using a survey of patients receiving care provided b y a physician group practice association concentrated on the West Coast. As ians and Pacific Islanders who had used their health plan in the past year had worse access to health care than whites, blacks, Hispanics, and Native American or other ethnicities. The odds that Asians reported that they had adequate access ranged from about one quarter to three quarters that of whi tes, depending on the measure. Cultural differences and associated communic ation problems may explain the access problems experienced by Asians. Inter ventions need to be developed to address the problems with access to servic es, and better translation services may play an important role in improving access to care for Asians. Future studies need to clarify why Asians were more vulnerable to the access problems examined than of her ethnic groups t hat might experience similar barriers.