Research Alert: July 11, 2023

Accommodation and Acceptability of Health Care by Non-Metropolitan/Metropolitan and Race/Ethnicity Status

Related to health care, accommodation considers that a provider has organized their practice in such a way that patients can access services. Acceptability indicates that the services provided were to the satisfaction of the patient. This research examined rural-urban (i.e., non-metropolitan/metropolitan) differences in accommodation and acceptability by operationalizing two survey questions from the health care access optional module of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey.

• Non-metropolitan respondents more frequently reported lack of transportation, whereas metropolitan respondents were more likely to report not getting appointments scheduled soon enough (both examples of accommodation barriers).
• Among the non-metropolitan respondents, lack of transportation was most common among Hispanic, non-Hispanic Black, and American Indian/Alaska Native respondents compared to non-Hispanic White counterparts.
• Non-metropolitan American Indian/Alaska Native and Hispanic respondents reported not being able to get care soon enough at higher levels than other groups living in non-metropolitan areas.
• Satisfaction with care was marginally but statistically significantly different between non-metropolitan and metropolitan respondents.
• Among non-metropolitan respondents, a higher percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native respondents reported not being at all satisfied with their care.

Additional Resources of Interest:

• Variations in Affordability of Health Care by Non-Metropolitan/Metropolitan and Race/Ethnicity Status Across Eight Geographically Dispersed States
• More information about the Rural and Minority Health Research Center
• More information from the Rural Health Information Hub's topic guide: Healthcare Access