The 20th annual Symposium will be held on Thursday, April 23, 2009.

An Ineffective and Inequitable Health Care Safety Net: A Case Study of Health Care Inequities for Chicago’s Homeless
Norris 104, 9:30 AM

Margaret  Schaefer,   '09 62
   Major: Biology
   Hometown: South Lyon, MI

Sponsor(s): Diana Ariza
Support: FURSCA

Abstract: 
The health care safety net in the United States is intended to fill gaps in access to medical services for individuals who are uninsured or who lack coverage all together. This system is made up of public hospitals, teaching hospitals, community-based clinics, and local health departments. Uninsured, poor Americans often rely on the health care safety net to receive medical services. According to U.S. Census data, in 2007, 45.7 million Americans were uninsured, and the number of Americans living in poverty rose to 37.3 million.

While some research has examined the effectiveness of the health care safety net in providing care for the uninsured, I was specifically interested in understanding the experiences of homeless individuals who rely on this system for care. In addition, I examined how social inequities compound the difficulties homeless individuals face in receiving adequate medical care.

A total of seven focus groups were conducted at three organizations which service the poor and homeless of Chicago. Through these groups, a total of 47 adults who rely on Chicago’s health care safety net for medical services shared their thoughts and experiences regarding access to medical care in Chicago. The responses of these individuals revealed substantial gaps in the health care safety net and provided poignant insight into the impact social inequities have on the health care experiences of the homeless.

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