Eighteen percent of adults over age 60 have skipped necessary medical treatment, according to a survey from Clover Health.
The survey, which Wakefield Research conducted on behalf of Clover Health, polled 1,000 adults age 60 and older nationwide about their healthcare habits.
Here are three survey findings to know:
1. Twenty-four percent of seniors with an annual household income below $35,000 have avoided seeking medical attention, along with 17 percent of individuals in the $35,000 to $74,999 income bracket and 12 percent of those whose annual income exceeded $75,000.
2. Twenty percent of women avoided seeing a physician despite a health concern, compared to 16 percent of men.
3. The most commonly cited reasons for skipping necessary medical care were high costs (40 percent), concerns the diagnosis would be too complex (27 percent) and the inability to find a physician they liked or felt comfortable with (20 percent).
"It is very concerning that 18 percent of U.S. seniors reported not seeking medical care even when they felt they needed a doctor’s attention," Kumar Dharmarajan, MD, chief scientific officer at Clover Health, said in a press release emailed to Becker's. "Older adults are particularly vulnerable to complications from chronic conditions and illnesses like the flu, making it crucial that they get the medical care they need."