Access to Care

Access to care is a complex topic that includes the study of whether sufficient health care resources exist to meet people’s needs, as well as whether people experience physical, financial or other barriers to those services. Evidence in this area can span from whether a rural community has enough specialists, like cardiologists, to whether people in an urban community have transportation or language barriers that make seeing health care providers more difficult.

Blog Post

Navigating Reproductive Health Post-Dobbs: What We Know About Changes In Contraception

As states impose new abortion restrictions, contraceptive choices are becoming more important and controversial, driving interest in long-term methods and revealing even more barriers to access

Posted Sep 3, 2025 By Maria I. Rodriguez, M.D., M.P.H., Megan L. Kavanaugh, Dr.P.H.

Topics Health Equity Access to Care

Publication

Doula Benefit Implementation in Six State Medicaid Programs

States have taken different approaches to implementing doula benefits in their Medicaid programs - this policy brief looks at the differences in six state Medicaid programs.

Posted Jun 09, 2025

Topics Health Equity Public & Population Health Insurance, Medicare & Medicaid Costs & Payments Access to Care

Publication

AcademyHealth Announces the Best of 2025 Annual Research Meeting

Research nominated as the best abstract for each theme from the 2025 Call for Abstracts explores topics related to how prepared hospitals are for the next pandemic, gender differences in primary care physician earnings and outcomes, and methods for decomposing heterogeneous treatment effects.

Posted May 07, 2025

Topics HSR Workforce Development HSR Resources & Methods Public & Population Health Health Equity Insurance, Medicare & Medicaid Access to Care Building Healthy Communities

Blog Post

AHRQ in Your Community: How National Investments Improve Local Health Care

AHRQ's research and implementation support improves the health of all communities. Given the recent changes and reductions in force at HHS, it is imperative that the work to improve care at the local level continues.

Posted Apr 8, 2025 By Jaime Adler, M.S., M.P.H.

Topics Building Healthy Communities Public & Population Health Delivering Better Care Access to Care

Blog Post

Bridging the Gap: AHRQ’s Role in Rural Health Care Access Amid Hospital Closures

AHRQ pioneers initiatives that break down barriers to care and improve health for rural Americans. Given the recent announcement on the reorganization of HHS, we’re highlighting AHRQ’s crucial role in rural health care.

Posted Apr 2, 2025 By Marley Catlett, M.P.H.

Topics Building Healthy Communities Public & Population Health Delivering Better Care Access to Care

Publication

Immigrant Inequities in Uninsurance and Postpartum Medicaid Extension: A Quasi-Experimental Study in New York City, 2016–2021

Researchers determine if de facto postpartum Medicaid extension during the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) reduced immigrant versus US-born inequities in uninsurance.

Posted Feb 27, 2025

Topics Delivering Better Care Hospitals & Health Systems Access to Care

Blog Post

Emergency Departments: A Potential Safety Net for Contraceptive Care Post-Dobbs

Emergency Departments show promise as settings where health care providers could provide critical contraception care, expanding access within their communities.

Posted Feb 25, 2025 By Maria I. Rodriguez, M.D., M.P.H., Esther Choo, M.D., M.P.H

Topics Access to Care Hospitals & Health Systems

Blog Post

Medicaid Medical Directors Offer Key Perspectives on Cell and Gene Therapies

As lead clinicians for their states with responsibility for overseeing clinical care and stewardship of resources, Medicaid Medical Directors propose policy recommendations to ensure equitable access to cell and gene therapies.

Posted Jan 27, 2025

Topics Insurance, Medicare & Medicaid Access to Care Health Equity Public & Population Health Paying for Care

Publication

Community Living Equity Dashboard

This dashboard examines who needs and receives Long Term Services and Supports (LTSS) across the United States and presents data on the percentage and demographic characteristics of racial and ethnic minorities with LTSS needs and their utilization of Medicaid HCBS and institutional LTSS by racial and ethnic categories, as well as other indicators of disparities in community living equity.

Posted Dec 13, 2024

Topics Access to Care

Blog Post

Advancing Oral Health Equity: A Collaborative Vision for the 2025 ARM Meeting

Building on a previous call to integrate oral health into health care systems and policy frameworks, the Oral Health Interest Group (OHIG) aims to foster interdisciplinary collaborations, reduce disparities, and drive policy innovation ahead of the 2025 Annual Research Meeting.

Posted Dec 4, 2024 By Priyanka Gudsoorkar, BDS, M.B.A., M.P.H., Lisa Heaton, Ph.D., Heather Taylor, Ph.D., MPH, LDH, Sujay A. J. Mehta, D.M.D., M.P.H.

Topics Access to Care Health Equity ARM