572 Ethnic inequalities in preventive care for cardiovascular disease in Australia

Abstract OP 29: Health Status 4, B302 (FCSH), September 4, 2025, 16:00 - 17:00 Aim International evidence has found that receipt of primary prevention for cardiovascular disease (CVD) can differ by ethnicity. Prior Australian research has demonstrated undertreatment of CVD risk factors in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. However, inequalities in the receipt of preventive therapies have not been examined in Australia’s non-Indigenous population. The aim of this study is to determine the presence of inequalities in primary preventative drug therapy for CVD by ethnicity in Australia. Methods We used data from a Census-linked cohort study of the New South Wales population aged 30 years and over. We created a cohort of individuals without prior history of a CVD event, who experienced their first CVD event during the period August 9, 2016 to June 2022. Incident CVD events were identified from hospitalisation or death records using relevant ICD-10-AM codes. We examined use of any preventative drug therapy (blood pressure and lipid lowering medications) in the two years prior to the first CVD event using linked prescription record data. Results In preliminary analyses, we found that the proportion of individuals receiving at least one prescription of preventative drug therapy was overall high in the cohort (0.88, 95%CI [0.87, 0.88]). A higher proportion of females (0.89, 95%CI [0.89, 0.89]) were prescribed preventive therapy compared to males (0.86, 95%CI [0.86, 0.87]). In addition, we found a lower proportion of Asian males (0.81, 95%CI [0.78, 0.84]), Pasifika males (0.72, 95%CI [0.63, 0.82]) and Māori females (0.69, 95%CI [0.52, 0.86]) were prescribed preventive medication before their first CVD event compared to the population average. Conclusion These fundings suggest that access to preventive medication for CVD in Australia differs by ethnicity and sex. Lower prescriptions in males and in Māori and Pasifika ethnic groups are concerning given their higher incidence of CVD.