The Use of Preventive Health Care in Asian Americans: The Cross- level Interactions between Individual and Neighborhood Factors in the United States

Abstract

The present study explored how individual-and neighborhood -level factors contribute to predicting the use of preventive health care in a sample of Asian Americans. The cross -level interaction between individual-and neighborhood -level factors was also examined. We found a significant interaction between individual -level health insurance coverage and neighborhood health care providers' availability. Those who were uninsured and living in areas with limited health care provider availability (bottom 20%) were the most disadvantaged. This study adds to the growing literature on the effect of neighborhood -level factors on health care as sources of disparities. For health care policy, identifying individuals without health insurance coverage and living in a neighborhood with limited health care providers should be a priority to diminish disparities in access to care.