Utilization of Preventative Care Services by African Americans Post-Affordable Care Act

Preventative care services allow patients to be fully equipped with the knowledge, tools, and other resources to help them discover and treat many diseases and illnesses so that the burden of costs will not fall on patients and their families. Since the passage of the Affordable Care of Act (ACA) by President Barack Obama, the requirement for health insurance coverage has not translated to utilization of preventative care services. The purpose of this study is to determine the motivation for African Americans who have insurance coverage and access to care who are not taking advantage of opportunities for screenings and health education. The health belief model was used to determine how belief and modifying factors influence health decisions. The quantitative study required use of a secondary dataset to determine utilization of preventative care services, insurance affordability, future access to care and understanding of the health care law. The study included testing the statistical significance of these factors among African Americans, White Americans, and Hispanic Americans who participated in the Healthy Americas Survey. Using the program SPSS to process data analyzation and organize output, results reveal that African American participants are concerned about the future ability to access and afford care. With a history of distrust amongst African Americans and the health industry, social implications are for administrators and providers to bridge the gap by offering health education to those in their immediate communities and requesting and implementing feedback from those same individuals