NCHS Data Briefs Update

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NCHS Data Brief No. 275, March 2017

Key findings

• In 2015, the percentage of adults aged 18–64 who delayed or did not obtain needed medical care due to cost in the past 12 months was highest among those diagnosed with 2 or more of 10 selected chronic conditions (16.9%), and it was lowest among those with none of the selected conditions (8.5%).
• The percentage of adults who delayed needed medical care for a non-cost reason in the past 12 months increased as the number of conditions increased.
• The percentage of adults who had seen or talked to a health professional in the past 12 months increased as the number of conditions increased.
• For 2012–2015, the percentage of adults aged 18–64 with two or more conditions who delayed or did not obtain needed medical care due to cost decreased, while the percentage who delayed medical care for a non-cost reason increased.

In 2014, 25.7% of adults had been diagnosed with multiple chronic conditions (MCC), or 2 or more of 10 selected chronic conditions, including hypertension, cancer, stroke, coronary heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, hepatitis, current asthma, weak or failing kidneys, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (1). As the number of chronic conditions increases, so do the health care costs for those diagnosed with MCC (2). In addition, the costs of managing these conditions further increases with advancing age (3). This report examines health care access and utilization among adults with MCC compared with those with one or no diagnosed chronic conditions.

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