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The Barriers
An estimated one in four Utahns cannot get healthcare due to access barriers. The biggest barrier to care is financial. People can’t afford the high cost of insurance, or medical care. But even if everyone could afford it, there would still be problems obtaining care. Geographic barriers are common in rural areas where people can live hundreds of miles from the nearest hospital. Even in urban areas, location plays a part when transportation is difficult. Having different cultural beliefs about medicine and health can also create difficulties when trying to obtain care. Speaking a different language than your healthcare provider can also create huge challenges. Fortunately, there are programs and services to help people overcome access barriers. Utah’s Safety Net is a collection of State, Private, and Federal programs, clinics, and providers that serve medically vulnerable populations. But the Safety Net is porous, and plenty of people still find themselves without care. They fall through the holes in the system.
