Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2014 Feb 27:11:E29.
doi: 10.5888/pcd11.130174.

Challenges in meeting Healthy People 2020 objectives for cancer-related preventive services, National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and 2010

Martin L Brown  1 , Carrie N Klabunde  2 , Kathy A Cronin  1 , Mary C White  3 , Lisa C Richardson  3 , Timothy S McNeel  4
Affiliations

Challenges in meeting Healthy People 2020 objectives for cancer-related preventive services, National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and 2010

Martin L Brown et al. Prev Chronic Dis. .

Abstract

Introduction: Healthy People (HP) is the US program that formulates and tracks national health objectives for the nation. The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is a designated data source for setting and evaluating several HP targets in cancer. We used data from the 2008 and 2010 NHIS to provide a benchmark for national performance toward meeting HP 2020 cancer-related objectives.

Methods: HP 2020 cancer screening, provider counseling, and health care access objectives were selected. For each objective, NHIS measures for the overall population and several sociodemographic subgroups were calculated; the findings were compared with established HP 2020 targets.

Results: From 2008 to 2010, rates of breast and cervical cancer screening declined slightly while colorectal cancer screening rates increased by 7 percentage points. Rates of cancer screening and provider counseling were below HP targets. Meeting HP targets seems less likely for subgroups characterized by low income, no health insurance, or no usual source of care. Meeting HP targets for access to health services will require an increase of 18 percentage points in the proportion of persons under age 65 with health insurance coverage and an increase of 10 percentage points in the proportion aged 18 to 64 with a usual source of care.

Conclusion: Whether HP objectives for cancer screening and health care access are met may depend on implementation of health care reform measures that improve access to and coordination of care. Better integration of clinical health care and community-based efforts for delivering high-quality screening and treatment services and elimination of health disparities are also needed.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Women aged 21 to 65 years who had a Papanicolaou test for cervical cancer in last 3 years, National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and 2010. The Healthy People 2020 goal is 93%. Abbreviation: CI, confidence interval. [Table: see text]
Figure 2
Figure 2
Women aged 50 to 74 years who had a mammogram in the past 2 years, National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and 2010. The Healthy People 2020 goal is 81.1%. Abbreviation: CI, confidence interval. [Table: see text]
Figure 3
Figure 3
Adults aged 50 to 75 years who were screened for colorectal cancer, National Health Interview Survey, 2008 and 2010. Screening was defined as having had a home blood stool test in past year, sigmoidoscopy in the past 5 years and home blood stool test in the past 3 years, or a colonoscopy in the past 10 years. The Healthy People 2020 goal is 70.5%. Abbreviation: CI, confidence interval. [Table: see text]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service. Healthy people: the Surgeon General’s report on health promotion and disease prevention. Washington (DC): Government Printing Office, 1979.
    1. Healthy people 2010 final review. Hyattsville (MD): National Center for Health Statistics; 2012. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hpdata2010/hp2010_final_review.pdf. Accessed April 4, 2013.
    1. About Healthy People. Introducing Healthy People 2020. Washington (DC): US Department of Health and Human Services; 2012. http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/about/default.aspx. Accessed April 4, 2013.
    1. Klabunde CN, Cronin KA, Breen N, Waldron WR, Ambs AH, Nadel MR. Trends in colorectal cancer test use among vulnerable populations in the United States. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2011;20(8):1611–21. 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-11-0220 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Sabatino SA, Coates RJ, Uhler RJ, Breen N, Tangka F, Shaw KM. Disparities in mammography use among US women aged 40–64 years, by race, ethnicity, income, and health insurance status, 1993 and 2005. Med Care 2008;46(7):692–700. 10.1097/MLR.0b013e31817893b1 - DOI - PubMed

Publication types