Study: 15.6% of people in Lafayette avoided doctor because they couldn't afford it
15.6% of residents surveyed in Lafayette recently needed to see a doctor but were unable to afford an appointment.
(KLFY) -- If you have avoided getting medical care because of financial issues, you are not alone.
According to a recent study of data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 15.6% of residents surveyed in Lafayette recently needed to see a doctor but were unable to afford an appointment. Lafayette had the fifth-highest percentage in the study among U.S. cities, and the top one not from Texas.
Louisiana had the eighth-highest percentage among states (11.6%) of those surveyed who responded "yes" to the question, "Have you needed to see a doctor in the last 12 months but could not afford it?"
Both the city and state were well above the national average of 9.3%. Texas was the state with the highest percentage of those unable to recieve health care for financial reasons, with 15.9%. Texas also had the top four cities in the nation, led by Beaumont/Port Arthur at 17%. The Houston area came in second in the nation at 16.3%, followed by El Paso and Fort Worth-Arlington, each at 15.9%, and then Lafayette.
Nationwide, In 18 states, at least 10% of the population was unable to afford a doctor’s visit. 25- to 34-year-olds reported the highest rate of missing a doctor’s appointment due to costs compared to all age groups.
Georgia came in second among the states at 15.5%, followed by Oklahoma (14.4%), Mississippi (13.1%) and Nevada (12.7%). Hawaii had the lowest percentage with 5.3%, followed by Iowa (6.0%) and Vermont (6.2%). Florida did not report data.
The study was conducted by HelpAdvisor, a health and research website, using data from 2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data provided by the CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Division of Population Health.
The data were gleaned from a total of 438,693 phone interviews conducted by the individual states over the 12 months of calendar year 2021, the most recent data available.