This study reinforces and expands on prior published findings that describe significant racial disparities in access to three preventive diabetes care services: hemoglobin A1C testing, eye exams, and nephropathy care. This study showed that Black beneficiaries with type two diabetes mellitus (T2DM) were less likely than their white counterparts to have received Medicare-paid preventive services. This study examines utilization of the three preventive services for Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries with T2DM, with a sample size of over 430,000 in five metropolitan areas in the United States. The study uses the 2016-2018 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 100% Research Identifiable Files, after controlling for geography, age, sex, and low-income status.

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