Everyday discrimination as a predictor of forgone care among early midlife adults in the United States.

Abstract

Forgone healthcare is associated with worsening health, higher mortality, and increasing healthcare costs. Everyday discrimination is associated with fewer preventive care screenings and poorer health. Yet prior research has not investigated whether everyday discrimination is associated with forgone healthcare in a nationally representative sample of US adults. We used longitudinal panel data to investigate the role of everyday discrimination in predicting forgone healthcare among US adults at midlife. Data are from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, a nationally representative panel study of US adults beginning in 1994-1995. Data were collected across six waves, with the most recent wave including data from 2022 to 2025. We used logistic regression and a lagged measure of everyday discrimination to predict forgone care. Analyses were conducted in 2025. As everyday discrimination increased, so did the odds of forgone healthcare. These results persisted when limiting the sample to the insured and after adjusting for socioeconomic status and diagnosed health conditions. Everyday discrimination and forgone care are associated with worsening health. Future research should continue to investigate how these experiences exacerbate health disparities at midlife.