Health-care ratings up among poor

More than half of low-income Californians say their health care is “excellent” or “very good,” according to a new survey.

Satisfaction increased significantly in recent years in continuity of care, wait times, availability of appointments, courtesy and cleanliness, according to the Blue Shield of California Foundation, which compared its recent results with those from 2011.

Thirty-one percent of patients now rate their care as “excellent” and 22 percent rate it “very good.” That total of 53 percent represents a 5 percentage-point increase over 2011.

The report also indicates that the number of low-income Californians without health insurance fell dramatically, from 30 percent in 2013 to 15 percent — after the Affordable Care Act’s first enrollment period. Covered California provides low-income state residents with subsidized health care under the Obamacare law. The percentage of higher-income residents without coverage fell as well, from 10 percent to 5 percent.

All of the news was not good: “Access to mental health and substance-abuse services continues to fall short of demand, and waiting times, though improved, remain the most widespread complaint,” researchers said.

Other findings:

• Five percent of patients were “highly satisfied” with their ability to see the same provider, up from 36 percent in 2011.
• Forty-six percent said they could get timely appointments with health-care providers.
• Waiting times drew a 34 percent favorable rating, up 11 percent, but this remained the top complaint area.
• Sixty percent said health-care facilities were clean, an improvement of 8 percent since 2011.

“Clinics listened to what patients were saying about their care experience and made improvements to care delivery, and now we see increased satisfaction among patients,” said Peter Long, the foundation’s president and CEO. “Given the uncertainty spurred by passage of the Affordable Care Act, and the influx of newly insured patients, this progress is particularly remarkable.”

But, Long said, “There are no easy fixes in the healthcare system.”

This survey was conducted Aug. 14 to Oct. 5, 2014, via telephone interviews with a representative statewide sample of 1,568 Californians between the ages of 19 and 64.

Low-income Californians were defined as having household incomes less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

The foundation says it is “one of California’s largest and most trusted grant-making organizations.”

Read the 120-page report “Delivering On A Promise: Advances and Opportunities in Health Care For Low-Income Californians.”