Access to health care is measured by.

Question

Options

• AThe type of insurance a person has.
• BThe number of times a person uses health care services.
• CThe quality of health care services a person has.
• DThe number of physicians available to a person.

• B
  90% (26)
• C
  7% (2)
• D
  3% (1)

Explanation

Access to health care is measured by utilization - how frequently a person actually uses health care services - because utilization reflects whether people can realistically obtain care, not just whether it theoretically exists for them. If someone uses health care services regularly, it demonstrates they have meaningful access to those services.

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A (type of insurance): Insurance type is a determinant of access - it influences whether someone can afford care - but it doesn't measure access itself. An uninsured person could still access care, and an insured person might face barriers that prevent use.
• C (quality of services): Quality measures how good the care is, not whether people can get to it. These are separate concepts - access and quality.
• D (number of physicians available): Physician supply measures availability, which is one input into access, but doesn't capture whether individuals actually reach those providers.

Memory tip: Think of "access" like a door: insurance (A) and physician supply (D) are about whether a door exists, quality (C) is about what's behind the door, but utilization (B) measures whether people are actually walking through the door - which is what access truly means.

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