Near Vision but not Hearing Loss is Associated with Lacking a Usual Source of Health Care.

Sensory loss may be a barrier to accessing healthcare services, and this study seeks to examine the association of sensory loss with whether older adults report having a usual source of health care. Our study included 7548 older adults who participated in the National Health and Aging Trends Study in 2015. Having a self-reported usual source of health care was our outcome, and hearing and vision loss were our primary independent variables. In multivariate analysis accounting for demographics, socioeconomic, health status, and environmental covariates, near vision loss but not distance vision or hearing loss was associated with decreased odds of having a usual source of health care. That older adults with near vision loss were less likely to report having a usual source of health care is concerning. Examining barriers to care is needed to identify sensory loss-relevant processes to optimize and intervene upon.