3: Access to Health Care
Increase the percentage of the Nation's children and adults who have access to health care services, and expand consumer choices Other Information:
The focus of Goal 3 is to promote increased access to health care, especially for persons who are uninsured, underserved,
or otherwise have health care needs that are not adequately addressed by the private health care system. The access challenges
are substantial, particularly for some groups. Overall, approximately 44 million persons in the United States lack health
insurance. Although recent efforts to cover the nation’s children are beginning to show success, many children still lack
coverage. Over 2,000 counties in the United States are designated health profession shortage areas where access to primary
health care for 53 million residents would be limited without HHS community programs. Access to treatment for persons with
HIV/AIDS, estimated to cost as much as -12,000 per year for antiretroviral therapy alone, could be severely limited without
support for the cost of drug therapies and associated services. A substantial majority of adults with diagnosable mental disorders
do not receive treatment. Many families cannot afford the cost of care for children with special health care needs. Minority
populations often have particular difficulties with access and they face a range of disparities in health care. For instance,
approximately 35 percent of Hispanics and 23 percent of African-Americans are without health insurance, compared with 14 percent
of white adults. Blacks and Hispanics are more likely than whites to be in fair or poor health. In addition to Medicare, the
Department addresses the access challenge through a variety of entitlement and safety net programs, such as Medicaid, the
State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Community Health Centers, that provide access to health care for uninsured
and low income individuals.
Objective(s):
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