American journal of obstetrics and gynecology
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Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. · Aug 2004
Racial and ethnic disparities in the provision of epidural analgesia to Georgia Medicaid beneficiaries during labor and delivery.
The purpose of this study was to measure racial and ethnic differences in the proportion of Medicaid patients who receive epidural analgesia during labor and delivery. ⋯ The study subjects all had identical Medicaid insurance and met the same low-income Medicaid eligibility criteria, yet race/ethnicity was still a significant predictor of epidural analgesia after we had controlled for age, rural-urban residence, and availability of anesthesiologists. Further studies are needed to assess perceived benefits, risks, costs, and obstacles to epidural analgesia that are perceived by patients, physicians, nurses, and midwives.