Article

Veterans with disabilities are at an increased risk of secondary impairments and
may have difficulty accessing preventive services;
accessibility may differ
between Veterans who do and do not receive care at Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) facilities. We used data from the 2003 and 2004 Behavioral Risk Factor
Surveillance System surveys to evaluate associations between disability and
receipt of preventive services in Veterans. Veterans with a disability were more
likely to have received influenza vaccinations (VA users and nonusers),
pneumococcal vaccinations (VA nonusers: p < 0.001; VA users:
p = 0.073), weight
management counseling (VA nonusers: p < 0.001; male VA users: p < 0.001), lower
gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy (VA nonusers: 50-64 yr, p = 0.03; VA users: >/=65
yr, p = 0.085), mammography (VA users: p = 0.097), and serum cholesterol
screening (VA nonusers: p < 0.001). Receipt was similar by disability status for
fecal occult blood test (FOBT), lower GI endoscopy (VA users: 50-64 yr), human
immunodeficiency virus testing, and cervical cancer screening. For no measure was
there significantly lower receipt in those with versus without a disability,
although there was marginal evidence in VA nonusers for overall colorectal cancer
screening (i.e., lower GI endoscopy or FOBT: p = 0.063). Among Veterans, having a
disability did not appear to be a barrier to receiving appropriate preventive care.

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