More than 96 percent (nearly 24 million) of insured Californians report "good" or better satisfaction with their health care. Researchers note that while the overall rate of satisfaction with health care is high among the state's insured population, many consumers are not obtaining recommended preventive services. The estimates in the brief come from analysis of the 2003 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS).

This policy brief reviews the literature on access to health care as it relates to current proposals for health care reform in California. To draw their conclusions, the authors of the publication reviewed existing literature on the expansion of primary health care centers versus the expansion of health insurance. Additionally, the authors analyzed data from the 2005 California Health Interview Survey to determine current levels of insurance, usual source of care, and how the two relate to each other. The authors found that: Expanding the health care safety net has been shown to improve access to care by providing a usual source of care or "medical home" and providing enabling services such as child care, transportation, interpreter services, and case management. However, while many uninsured Californians are able to access primary care through community clinics and health centers, specialty services are not readily available. Having health insurance is associated with better health status and improved access to care. Still, health insurance alone is not sufficient to guarantee access to necessary services, especially in light of recent market trends toward high-deductible health plans, reductions in benefits, and greater patient cost sharing. In order to significantly reduce the barriers to access faced by Californians, the expansion of health insurance and primary care centers will have to happen together.

This report was produced by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research under contract to the California Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC), Department of Industrial Relations, which is required to perform an annual study of access to medical treatment for injured workers. In order to accomplish this goal, the authors conducted surveys of injured workers, providers authorized to act as the primary treating physician in Workers' Compensation cases, and payers.

More than 1 million adult HMO members in California with limited English proficiency are at risk for problems accessing health care services and receiving quality treatment. This study illustrates the substantial need for language services in commercial plans, Medi-Cal and Healthy Families, and highlights the importance of recent statutory changes that will require the California Department of Managed Health Care to oversee and regulate language services in licensed HMOs. The policy brief details the percentages of HMO enrollees with limited English proficiency enrolled in commercial and public HMOs, as well as in particular commercial health plans. The brief also details the percentages of enrollees that experienced difficulty understanding their health care provider, both by commercial and public HMOs, and by individual commercial health plan. Data for the analysis in this brief came from the 2003 California Health Interview Survey.