Do transgender men have equal access to health care and engagement in preventive health behaviors compared to cisgender adults?

Soc Work Health Care. 2018 Aug;57(7):502-525. doi: 10.1080/00981389.2018.1462292. Epub 2018 Apr 30.

Abstract

Using 2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data, this study investigates whether transgender men have equal access to health care and engagement in preventive health behaviors compared to cisgender adults in the U.S. and whether race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and rural residence moderate these relationships. Once controlling for sociodemographic factors, we do not find differences for transgender men. Rural transgender men were less likely to have a personal doctor or receive a blood cholesterol screening than their urban peers; transgender men with less education were more likely to have a cholesterol screening. We detail implications for social workers within health care.

Keywords: FTM; health-care access; preventive health; rural; transgender men.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
  • Ethnicity
  • HIV Infections / diagnosis
  • Health Behavior*
  • Health Services Accessibility*
  • Humans
  • Logistic Models
  • Male
  • Men's Health*
  • Middle Aged
  • Preventive Health Services*
  • Rural Population
  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Transgender Persons / psychology*
  • United States
  • Urban Population
  • Young Adult