P04.71. Acupuncture, self-care homeopathy, and practitioner-based homeopathy: comparing users in the 2007 NHIS

Results All users were significantly more likely than the general population to be female, to have a Bachelor’s or higher education and to describe their health as good to excellent. However, acupuncture users were significantly more likely to score in the range of Serious Mental Illness on the K6 depression scale. Self-care homeopathy was most used by individuals of multiple race (4.4%), followed by Native Americans (3.8%); practitioner guided homeopathy by Asian Indians (2.1%); and acupuncture by Chinese (6.8%). Whites seemed more likely to use homeopathy (1.9%) than acupuncture (1.6%), but the difference was not significant (p=0.10). Of the conditions listed, homeopathy was most used for respiratory infections and acupuncture for back pain. All users were significantly more likely than the general population to have delayed or not obtained medical care because of cost. In contrast, they were also more likely to have income from interest and investments. Realistic estimates of actual expenditures are difficult due to the bimodal nature of the question asked with a threshold of $500.