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AHRQ Research Studies
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Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
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1 to 3 of 3 Research Studies DisplayedLoomer L, Rahman M, Mroz TM
Impact of higher payments for rural home health episodes on rehospitalizations.
This article evaluated the impact of higher Medicare payments for rural home health care on rehospitalizations. In 2010, Medicare began paying home health (HH) providers 3% more to serve rural beneficiaries. The authors used Medicare data on postacute HH episodes from 2007 to 2014 to estimate the impact of higher payments on beneficiaries outcomes using difference-in-differences analysis, comparing rehospitalizations between rural and urban postacute HH episodes before and after 2010. Their sample included 5.6 million post acute HH episodes (18% rural). After 2010 30- and 60-day rehospitalization rates declined by 10.08% and 16.49% for urban HH episodes and 9.87% and 16.08% for rural HH episodes, respectively. The difference-in-difference estimate was 0.29 percentage points and 0.57 percentage points for 30- and 60-day rehospitalization, respectively.
AHRQ-funded; HS027054.
Citation: Loomer L, Rahman M, Mroz TM .
Impact of higher payments for rural home health episodes on rehospitalizations.
J Rural Health 2023 Jun; 39(3):604-10. doi: 10.1111/jrh.12725..
Keywords: Payment, Rural Health, Rural/Inner-City Residents, Hospital Readmissions, Hospitalization
Mroz TM, Patterson DG, Frogner BK
The impact of Medicare's rural add-on payments on supply of home health agencies serving rural counties.
This analysis looked at the impact of Medicare’s rural add-on payments on supply of home health agencies serving rural counties. The authors used data from Home Health Compare. The results suggest that while supply changes are similar in rural counties adjacent to urban areas and urban counties regardless of add-on payments, only higher add-payments of 5 to 10 percent to rural counties keep them on pace with those in urban counties.
AHRQ-funded; HS024777.
Citation: Mroz TM, Patterson DG, Frogner BK .
The impact of Medicare's rural add-on payments on supply of home health agencies serving rural counties.
Health Aff 2020 Jun;39(6):949-57. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2019.00952..
Keywords: Elderly, Medicare, Home Healthcare, Rural Health, Payment, Access to Care
Gowrisankaran G, Lucarelli C, Schmidt-Dengler P
Can amputation save the hospital? The impact of the Medicare Rural Flexibility Program on demand and welfare.
This paper sought to understand the impact of the Medicare Rural Hospital Flexibility (Flex) Program on hospital choice and consumer welfare for rural residents. The Flex Program created a new class of hospital, the Critical Access Hospital (CAH), which received more generous Medicare reimbursements in return for limits on capacity and length of stay. The investigators found that conversion to CAH status resulted in a 4.7 percent drop in inpatient admissions to participating hospitals, almost all of which was driven by factors other than capacity constraints.
AHRQ-funded; HS018424.
Citation: Gowrisankaran G, Lucarelli C, Schmidt-Dengler P .
Can amputation save the hospital? The impact of the Medicare Rural Flexibility Program on demand and welfare.
J Health Econ 2018 Mar;58:110-22. doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2018.01.004..
Keywords: Rural Health, Access to Care, Hospitals, Medicare, Payment