New study shows low-income families face 3 barriers to health care

PORTLAND, Ore. - There are so many problems in our health care delivery system and its financing structure that even families who have health insurance are having problems getting care as well as paying for it, according to a recent study by an Oregon Health & Science University family physician. The study, "Insurance Plus Access Does Not Equal Health Care: Typology of Barriers to Health Care Access for Low Income Families," recently was published in the journal Annals of Family Medicine.

"Incremental health insurance reforms alone are not going to solve these problems. A more comprehensive approach is desperately needed," said Jennifer DeVoe, M.D., D.Phil., research assistant professor of family medicine, OHSU School of Medicine.