Access to Health Care Among Children in Boulder County
Children without access to health care generally:
Have lower immunization rates.
Are less likely
to receive routine, preventive care during which development and growth
are evaluated and parent education is provided.
Although good health
depends on more than access to health services, access to quality health
services is a necessary prerequisite. Utilization of health services can
reduce the occurrence of disease by:
Preventing it from occurring (e.g.
immunizations).
Detecting it early by dealing with it before it is
manifested (e.g. through screening and consequent intervention).
Treating it so that its effects are eliminated or reduced.
The most current local data available on children’s access
to health care are from a study conducted by Boulder County Public Health
in 1999. This study found:
The vast majority (93.9%) of children aged
0-12 in Boulder County had health insurance.
Approximately 2,800
children were without any type of coverage (1999 population estimate).
By
way of comparison:
88.9% of children aged 0-17 nationwide had health
insurance coverage in 1998.
In 1996, 89.2% of children aged 0-17 in Colorado were
covered by health insurance.
The following table shows the percentage of Boulder County
children with health insurance coverage by age group, ethnicity, poverty
status, city of residence, and type of coverage.
The older children were
slightly less likely to be insured, as were Hispanics and all children
below 100% of poverty level.
The city of Boulder had the smallest proportion of children
with health insurance (91.8%).
The city of Louisville
had the largest proportion of children with health insurance (98.3%).
The majority (86%) of Boulder County children aged 0-12 in
this study had private health insurance.
Health Planning Program, Boulder County Public Health
3450 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80304
(303) 441-1572,
www.BoulderCountyHealth.org/hp
