Patients at community health centers in Washington and Idaho received meaningfully different types of cervical cancer screening depending on which clinic system they visited, according to an analysis published in BMC Primary Care. Patients living in rural areas, patients without insurance, and patients with fewer primary care visits were significantly less likely to receive the more comprehensive test.
The finding, reported by the University of Minnesota's Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, examined three primary care systems operated by federally qualified health centers. These nonprofits receive federal grants to provide medical services in underserved communities regardless of a patient's ability to pay.
