Skin Cancer Care Delays Influenced by Low Income, Insurance Barriers

Patients with skin cancer are more likely to delay care if they have low incomes or are underinsured or uninsured, according to a poster presented at the 2023 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), held from March 17 to 21, 2023, in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Researchers included 4687 individuals who participated in the 2008 to 2017 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey in a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis to identify sociodemographic variables associated with delayed care in patients with skin cancer. Using multivariable regression models adjusted for age, sex, race and ethnicity, education, poverty level, insurance coverage type, and skin cancer type, the team identified 3 factors associated with delays in care. The influencing factors included low income (odds ratio [OR], 1.69; 95% CI, 1.13-2.54; P =.01), insurance through Medicaid or public insurance (OR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.14-2.49; P =.009), and not having insurance (OR, 2.78; 95% CI, 1.38-5.61; P =.004).

Frequently reported reasons for delayed medical care in patients with skin cancer include inability to afford care (weighted percent, 18.7%), lack of insurance coverage (9.5%), and lack of time (7.8%), the presenters found. Participants with low income were more likely to report inability to afford care (P =.019) and difficulty getting to physicians’ offices (P =.008) as reasons for delayed care compared with individuals earning higher incomes.

“Interventions aimed at improving equitable and timely access to care for skin cancer patients should focus on financial and physical barriers to care,” according to the poster presenters.

Disclosure: Some study authors declared affiliations with biotech, pharmaceutical, and/or device companies. Please see the original reference for a full list of authors’ disclosures.