National Outcomes of Increasing Cervical Cancer Screening in Federally Qualified Health Centers

What proportion of individuals from traditionally underscreened groups is served by federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and how would increasing cervical cancer screening (CCS) in FQHCs change national screening rates?This cross-sectional study of 7 757 211 US adults served by FQHCs found that FQHCs served 35.9% of underscreened publicly insured individuals, 26.3% of underscreened rural individuals, 22.4% of underscreened individuals living at or below 200% of the poverty line, 19.5% of underscreened uninsured individuals, and 17.7% of underscreened individuals from racial or ethnic minority groups. Increasing CCS in FQHCs to the Healthy People 2030 goal (79.2%) would considerably improve national screening rates overall and for each subgroup.These results suggest that initiatives to improve CCS in FQHCs would increase national CCS and mitigate CCS disparities.

Corresponding Author: Trisha L. Amboree, PhD, Department of Public Health Sciences and Hollings Cancer Center, Medical University of South Carolina, 86 Jonathan Lucas St, Charleston, SC 29425 (amboree@musc.edu).

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