Disparities in Routine Primary Care Utilization Between Medicaid-insured and Uninsured Adults within Medicaid Expansion States

The objective of this study was to examine whether disparities exist between Medicaid-insured adults and uninsured adults regarding primary care utilization in Medicaid expansion states. Access to primary care is essential to long-term health outcomes; therefore, detecting disparities is crucial. Analysis was done through Excel using the 2024 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) with a sample size ranging from 534 to 5186 respondents per variable. The cross-sectional analysis done by pivot tables and independent (two-sample) t-tests found that Medicaid-insured recipients were statistically more likely to utilize primary care compared to the uninsured population. Results were analyzed from 15 Medicaid expansion states: Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. These findings were further examined for demographic factors: education level, employment status, and gender. Altogether, the findings suggest that while Medicaid expansion improves access to primary care, significant effort is needed to mitigate low primary care utilization amongst the uninsured population.