Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality

STATISTICAL BRIEF #201 

March 2008 

Highlights 

 Women ages 18–64 were 

more likely than men ages 

18–64 to have an officebased or outpatient health 

care visit in 2005 (80.0 

percent versus 59.6 

percent). 

 About one-half of women 

(49.4 percent) ages 18–64 

had a visit for a general 

checkup in 2005 compared 

to only 28.5 percent of men 

ages 18–64. 

 Non-Hispanics ages 18–64 

(regardless of their race) 

were more likely to have 

had an ambulatory health 

care visit as well as a 

general checkup in 

comparison to Hispanics of 

the same age. 

 In 2005, non-elderly adults 

with private insurance as 

well as those with public 

only insurance were more 

likely than their uninsured 

counterparts to have an 

office-based visit (75.4 

percent and 77.8 percent 

versus 42.3 percent, 

respectively). Non elderly 

adults with private 

insurance or public only 

insurance were also more 

likely to have had a 

general checkup (43.4 

percent and 44.4 percent, 

respectively) when 

compared to uninsured 

non-elderly adults (17.5 

percent). 

Variation in Ambulatory Health Care 

Visits and Visits for General Checkup 

by Demographic Characteristics and 

Insurance Status, U.S. Civilian 

Noninstitutionalized Population Ages 

18–64, 2005 

Trena M. Ezzati-Rice, MS and Frederick Rohde, MA 

Introduction 

This Statistical Brief examines the differences between men and 

women in ambulatory health care visits (office based and hospital 

outpatient) and visits made for a general checkup. The comparisons 

between men and women are for all non-elderly adults ages 18–64 

in the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population in 2005 as well as 

for those ages 18–44 and ages 45–64. This Brief also provides 

estimates of ambulatory health care visits and visits made for a 

general checkup by race/ethnicity and insurance status for persons 

ages 18–64. The estimates are derived from the Household 

Component of the 2005 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPSHC). Only differences between estimates that are statistically 

significant at the 0.05 level are discussed in the text. 

Findings 

Among adults ages 18–64, women were more likely than men to 

have an office-based or outpatient health care visit in 2005. More 

specifically, 80.0 percent of women had one or more ambulatory 

health care visits compared to only 59.6 percent of men. About 

three-quarters (76.1 percent) of younger adult women ages 18–44

had ambulatory health care visits versus only half (50.3 percent) of 

their male counterparts. While women ages 45–64 were also more 

likely than men ages 45–64 to have one or more ambulatory health 

care visits (85.7 and 73.8 percent, respectively), the magnitude of 

the difference for this age group was much less than the observed 

differential for younger adults (figure 1). 

Women ages 18–64 with at least one ambulatory health care visit in 

2005 had a higher mean number of visits than men (8.7 versus 6.8). 

The relative differential in the mean number of visits between 
females and males was comparable for persons ages 18–44 (7.1 visits for females and 5.5 visits for men) 

and for persons ages 45–64 (10.7 visits for females and 8.2 visits for males). (Data not shown in figure). 

About half of women (49.4 percent) ages 18–64 had a visit for a general checkup in 2005 compared to 

just 28.5 percent of men ages 18–64. Younger adult women ages 18–44 were twice as likely as their 

male counterparts to have had a general checkup (41.7 percent of women versus 18.5 percent of men). 

This relative differential among women and men was smaller among the 45–64 year old age group with 

60.7 percent of women and 43.7 percent of men having had an ambulatory checkup visit (figure 2). 

Hispanic adults ages 18–64 were less likely to have an office-based or outpatient health care visit 

compared to black non-Hispanics single race, white non-Hispanics single race, Asian or Pacific Islander 

non-Hispanics single race, or other single race/multiple race non-Hispanics. Hispanics were also the least 

likely to have had an ambulatory visit for a general checkup during 2005 (figure 3). 

Among non-elderly adults with private insurance, 75.4 percent had an office-based visit in 2005; among 

those with public only insurance 77.8 percent had an office-based visit. In comparison, only 42.3 percent 

of uninsured non-elderly adults had an office-based visit in 2005. Non-elderly adults with private 

insurance or public only insurance were also more likely to have had a general checkup (43.4 percent 

and 44.4 percent, respectively) when compared to uninsured non-elderly adults (17.5 percent) (figure 4). 

Data Source 

The estimates shown in this Statistical Brief were produced by MEPS staff from the 2005 office based 

and outpatient event files, HC-094F and HC-094G, and the 2005 Full Year Consolidated Data File, HC097, which are available on the MEPS Web site, http://www.meps.ahrq.gov. 

Definitions/Methodology 

Population 

The statistics are for people who lived in the community for all or part of the year and were ages 18–64. 

Age 

Age is that of the sample person as of December 31 of the reported year. 

Ambulatory health care visit 

For purposes of this Statistical Brief, an ambulatory health care visit is defined as any visit to an officebased medical provider or a hospital outpatient facility. 

Reasons for visit 

For each health care event reported by MEPS respondents, various reasons for the visit are obtained. 

This Statistical Brief uses the general checkup reason for visit category. 

Race/ethnicity 

Classification by race/ethnicity was based on information reported for each family member. Respondents 

were asked if each family member’s race was best described as American Indian, Alaskan Native, Asian 

or Pacific Islander, black, white, or other. They also were asked if each family member’s main national 

origin or ancestry was Puerto Rican; Cuban; Mexican, Mexicano, Mexican-American, or Chicano; other 

Latin American; or other Spanish. All persons whose main national origin or ancestry was reported in one 

of these Hispanic groups regardless of racial background were classified as Hispanic. Since the Hispanic 

grouping can include black, Hispanic, white Hispanic, Asian and Pacific Islanders Hispanic, and other 

Hispanic, the race categories of black, white, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and other do not include 

Hispanic. MEPS respondents who reported other single or multiple races and were non-Hispanic were 

included in the other category. For this analysis, the following classification by race and ethnicity was 

used: Hispanic (of any race), black non-Hispanic single race, white non-Hispanic single race, Asian and 

Pacific Islander non-Hispanic single race, and other single race/multiple race non-Hispanic. 

Insurance status 

Insurance categories are hierarchical. Private insurance includes anyone who had any private insurance 

(including TRICARE) at any time during the year. Public only insurance includes anyone who had public 
only insurance at any time during the year. Uninsured refers to people who did not have any private or 

public insurance at any time during the year. 

About MEPS-HC 

The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component (MEPS-HC) is a nationally representative 

longitudinal survey that collects detailed information on health care utilization and expenditures, health 

insurance, and health status, as well as a wide variety of social, demographic, and economic 

characteristics for the civilian noninstitutionalized population. It is cosponsored by the Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality and the National Center for Health Statistics. 

For more information about MEPS, call the MEPS information coordinator at AHRQ (301-427-1656) or 

visit the MEPS Web site at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/. 

References 

For a detailed description of the MEPS-HC survey and sample design, and methods used to minimize 

sources on nonsampling error, see the following publications: 

Cohen, J. Design and Methods of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component. MEPS 

Methodology Report No. 1. AHCPR Pub. No. 97-0026. Rockville, MD.: Agency for Healthcare Policy and 

Research, 1997. http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/mr1/mr1.pdf 

Cohen, S. Sample Design of the 1996 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component. MEPS 

Methodology Report No. 2. AHCPR Pub. No. 97-0027. Rockville, MD.: Agency for Healthcare Policy and 

Research, 1997. http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/mr2/mr2.pdf 

Cohen, S. Design Strategies and Innovations in the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. Medical Care, 

July 2003; 41(7) Supplement: III-5–III-12. 

Ezzati-Rice, TM, Rohde, F, Greenblatt, J, Sample Design of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey 

Household Component, 1998–2007. Methodology Report No. 22. March 2008. Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/

mr22/mr22.pdf 

Suggested Citation 

Ezzati-Rice, TM, Rohde, F. Variation in Ambulatory Health Care Visits and Visits for General Checkup by 

Demographic Characteristics and Insurance Status, U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population Ages 

18–64, 2005. Statistical Brief #201. March 2008. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, 

MD http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/data_files/publications/st201/stat201.pdf 

 

# # # 

AHRQ welcomes questions and comments from readers of this publication who are interested in 

obtaining more information about access, cost, use, financing, and quality of health care in the United 

States. We also invite you to tell us how you are using this Statistical Brief and other MEPS data and 

tools and to share suggestions on how MEPS products might be enhanced to further meet your needs. 

Please e-mail us at mepspd@ahrq.gov or send a letter to the address below: 

Steven B. Cohen, PhD, Director 

Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends 

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 

540 Gaither Road 

Rockville, MD 20850 
Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, 

2005

85.7

73.8

50.3

59.6

80.0

76.1

0

20

40

60

80

100

Overall 18-64 18-44 45-64

Male Female

Percentage 

Figure 1. Percentage of non-elderly adults with ambulatory 

health care visits by gender and age, 2005

Age

Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, 

2005

60.7

43.7

18.5

28.5

49.4

41.7

0

20

40

60

80

100

Overall 18-64 18-44 45-64

Male Female

Percentage 

Figure 2. Percentage of non-elderly adults with a general 

check-up visit in the past year by gender and age, 2005

Age

Statistical Brief #201: Variation in Ambulatory Health Care Visits and Visits for General Check up by 

Demographic Characteristics and Insurance Status, U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population Ages 

18−64, 2005 
Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, 

2005

42.6

58.5

26.1

53.2

61.8

36.7

75.7

33.6

71.4

40.2

0

20

40

60

80

100

Ambulatory health care visits General check up

Hispanic

Black non-Hispanic single race

White non-Hispanic single race

Asian or Pacific Islander non-Hispanic single race

Other single race/multiple race non-hispanic

Percentage 

Figure 3. Percentage of non-elderly adults with ambulatory 

health care visits and with a general check-up visit in the 

past year by race/ethnicity, 2005

Source: Center for Financing, Access, and Cost Trends, AHRQ, Household Component of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey, 

2005

17.5

75.4

43.4 44.4

77.8

42.3

0

20

40

60

80

100

Ambulatory health care visits General check up

Private Insurance

Public Only

Uninsured

Percentage 

Figure 4. Percentage of non-elderly adults with ambulatory

health care visits and with a general check-up visit 

in the past year by insurance status, 2005

Statistical Brief #201: Variation in Ambulatory Health Care Visits and Visits for General Check up by 

Demographic Characteristics and Insurance Status, U.S. Civilian Noninstitutionalized Population Ages 

18−64, 2005