Access to Healthcare Among American Indian and Alaska Native Adults in California

Susan H. Babey, PhD, Alex J. Bates, PhD, MD, MPH, Nicamer Tolentino, MPH, Antoinette Medina

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Fact Sheet Press Release

Graphic with AIAN access to healthcare, adverse childhood experiences, and suicide publication covers

Highlights

Many American Indian and Alaska Native adults in California have no usual source of healthcare and had no preventive care visits in the past year.

AIAN adults in California were more likely to delay needed medical in the past year than all adults in the state.

AIAN adults in California were more likely to visit an emergency department in the past year than all adults in the state

Summary

Published Date: August 27, 2026

American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) populations face longstanding barriers to healthcare.

Using data from the 2020–2024 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), this fact sheet examines healthcare access among AIAN adults in California across six indicators: health insurance coverage, usual source of care, preventive care visits, emergency department visits, delays in accessing needed medical care, and delays in filling prescribed medication. American Indian and Alaska Native adults in California fared worse on all of them compared with all adults in the state.

Access to timely and appropriate healthcare is a fundamental determinant of health and a crucial component of preventing and managing disease. These results suggest a need to make culturally responsive and geographically accessible primary care more available, especially for rural communities.

Findings:

Nearly 1 in 7 AIAN adults (14%) did not have health insurance for all or part of the past year compared with 10% of all California adults.
About 1 in 5 AIAN adults (21%) delayed needed medical care in the past year compared with 18% of all California adults.
More than 1 in 3 AIAN adults (35%) had no preventive care visits in the past year, which was higher than the state average.
Nearly 1 in 4 AIAN adults (22%) had no place they usually go for medical care, compared to fewer than 1 in 5 of all adults (19%).

Data Points

21%

American Indian and Alaska Native adults in California reported delaying necessary medical care in the past year, and more than half (53%) of those never received the care they needed.