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Urban parents' knowledge and practices regarding managed care.
Glenn Flores1, Milagros Abreu, Donglin Sun
1Department of Pediatrics, Center for the Advancement of Urban Children, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53226, USA. gflores@mail.mcw.edu
Medical Care
|April 13, 2004
Summary
Inner-city parents often lack understanding of managed care (health insurance). Improved, accessible information is crucial, especially for low-income, Latino, and limited-English proficient families.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Health Insurance
- Healthcare Access
Background:
- Managed care is the predominant health insurance in the U.S., covering millions of children.
- Understanding of managed care's complexities by inner-city parents is largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess managed care knowledge and practices among inner-city parents.
- Identify disparities in understanding based on demographics and insurance type.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional survey of 1100 parents at Boston community sites.
- Administered 74 questions covering insurance, access, and managed care specifics.
Main Results:
- 55% of children were in managed care, yet 45% of parents were unaware.
- 88% of parents couldn't define managed care; 94% didn't know specific features.
- Low income, Latino ethnicity, and limited English proficiency correlated with lower understanding.
- Many parents would bypass prior authorization for emergency visits for minor illnesses.
Conclusions:
- Most inner-city parents exhibit poor understanding of managed care definitions and rules.
- Significant knowledge gaps exist regarding managed care practices, including prior authorization.
- Targeted, comprehensible information is needed for vulnerable populations: poor, Latino, and limited-English proficient parents.