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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.
Results
1 to 14 of 14 Research Studies DisplayedHassmiller Lich K, O'Leary MC, Nambiar S
Estimating the impact of insurance expansion on colorectal cancer and related costs in North Carolina: a population-level simulation analysis.
Researchers used microsimulation to estimate the health and financial effects of insurance expansion and reduction scenarios in North Carolina (NC) for colorectal cancer screening (CRC). The full lifetime of a simulated population of residents age-eligible for CRC screening (aged 50-75) during a 5-year period were simulated. Findings indicate that the estimated cost savings--balancing increased CRC screening/testing costs against decreased cancer treatment costs--were approximately $30 M and $970 M for Medicaid expansion and Medicare-for-all scenarios, respectively, compared to status quo. The researchers concluded that insurance expansion will likely improve CRC screening both overall and in underserved populations while saving money, with the largest savings realized by Medicare.
AHRQ-funded; HS022981.
Citation: Hassmiller Lich K, O'Leary MC, Nambiar S .
Estimating the impact of insurance expansion on colorectal cancer and related costs in North Carolina: a population-level simulation analysis.
Prev Med 2019 Dec;129s:105847. doi: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2019.105847..
Keywords: Health Insurance, Cancer: Colorectal Cancer, Cancer, Healthcare Costs, Screening, Prevention, Medicaid, Medicare, Policy, Access to Care
Sun EC, Mello MM, Moshfegh J
Assessment of out-of-network billing for privately insured patients receiving care in in-network hospitals.
This retrospective analysis used data from the Clinformatics Data Mart database (Optum) to examine out-of-network billing among privately insured patients with an inpatient admission or emergency department (ED) visit at in-network hospitals. The investigators found that out-of-network billing appeared to have become common for privately insured patients even when they soughttreatment at in-network hospitals. They indicated that the mean amounts billed appeared to be sufficiently large that they may create financial strain for a substantial proportion of patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS026128.
Citation: Sun EC, Mello MM, Moshfegh J .
Assessment of out-of-network billing for privately insured patients receiving care in in-network hospitals.
JAMA Intern Med 2019 Nov;179(11):1453-612. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2019.3451..
Keywords: Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Payment, Hospitals, Emergency Department
Jacobs PD, Selden TM
AHRQ Author: Jacobs PD, Selden TM
Changes in the equity of US health care financing in the period 2005-16.
This study examined changes in how households pay for health care spending in the United States from 2005 to 2016. At the start of the study period, households in the bottom 20% of income paid 26.8% of their income for health care compared to about half that amount for those with income in the top 1 percent. By 2016 the percentages had become about the same across all income levels. This result reflected increases in coverage through Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Jacobs PD, Selden TM .
Changes in the equity of US health care financing in the period 2005-16.
Health Aff 2019 Nov;38(11):1791-800. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2019.00625..
Keywords: Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), Healthcare Costs, Health Insurance, Medicare, Policy
Moniz MH, Soliman AB, Kolenic GE
Cost sharing and utilization of postpartum intrauterine devices and contraceptive implants among commercially insured women.
Investigators evaluated the association between out-of-pocket costs and long-acting reversible contraceptive (LARC) insertion among commercially insured postpartum women. Using the Clinformatics Data Mart, they found that cost sharing for postpartum LARC is associated with use, suggesting that out-of-pocket costs may impede LARC access for some commercially insured postpartum women. They concluded that reducing out-of-pocket costs for the most effective forms of contraception may increase use.
AHRQ-funded; HS025465; HS023784.
Citation: Moniz MH, Soliman AB, Kolenic GE .
Cost sharing and utilization of postpartum intrauterine devices and contraceptive implants among commercially insured women.
Womens Health Issues 2019 Nov - Dec;29(6):465-70. doi: 10.1016/j.whi.2019.07.006..
Keywords: Women, Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Access to Care
McClellan C, Fingar KR, Ali MM
AHRQ Author: McClellan C
Price elasticity of demand for buprenorphine/naloxone prescriptions.
In this study, using the IBM MarketScan(R) Commercial Claims and Encounters Database for individuals with employer-sponsored private health insurance coverage, the researchers examined the relationship between cost sharing and the number of buprenorphine/naloxone prescription fills using enrollee-level longitudinal fixed effects models.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: McClellan C, Fingar KR, Ali MM .
Price elasticity of demand for buprenorphine/naloxone prescriptions.
J Subst Abuse Treat 2019 Nov;106:4-11. doi: 10.1016/j.jsat.2019.08.001..
Keywords: Medication, Healthcare Costs, Health Insurance
Regenbogen SE, Cain-Nielsen AH, Syrjamaki JD
Spending on postacute care after hospitalization in commercial insurance and Medicare around age sixty-five.
Postacute care costs are the primary determinant of episode spending around hospitalization. Yet there is little evidence that greater spending on postacute care improves readmission rates or functional recovery. In a population-based, statewide collaborative of Michigan hospitals, the investigators used regression discontinuity design among propensity-weighted, age-adjusted cohorts to compare postacute care spending between patients with commercial insurance and those with Medicare around age sixty-five. This paper describes the study.
AHRQ-funded; HS024698.
Citation: Regenbogen SE, Cain-Nielsen AH, Syrjamaki JD .
Spending on postacute care after hospitalization in commercial insurance and Medicare around age sixty-five.
Health Aff 2019 Sep;38(9):1505-13. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2018.05445..
Keywords: Healthcare Costs, Health Insurance, Medicare, Hospitalization
Pickens G, Karaca Z, Gibson TB
AHRQ Author: Karaca Z, Wong HS
Changes in hospital service demand, cost, and patient illness severity following health reform.
This study examined the effects of expanded Medicaid coverage and the health insurance exchange on the number of hospital inpatient and emergency department (ED) utilization rates, cost, and patient illness severity. There was a significant drop in uninsured inpatient discharges and ED visits in states where Medicaid was expanded. For all by young females, uninsured inpatient discharge rates fell by 39% or greater. In nonexpansion states, the rates remained unchanged or increased slightly. Changes in all-payer and private insurance rates were not as dramatic, as was inpatient costs per discharge and all-payer inpatient costs.
AHRQ-authored; AHRQ-funded; 290201300002C.
Citation: Pickens G, Karaca Z, Gibson TB .
Changes in hospital service demand, cost, and patient illness severity following health reform.
Health Serv Res 2019 Aug;54(4):739-51. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.13165..
Keywords: Access to Care, Health Insurance, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), Healthcare Costs, Healthcare Utilization, Hospitals, Medicaid, Policy, Uninsured
Hill SC, Solomon KT, Maclean JC
AHRQ Author: Hill SC
Effects of improvements in the CPS on the estimated prevalence of medical financial burdens.
The authors sought to measure the effects of questionnaire and imputation improvements in the Current Population Survey (CPS) on the estimated prevalence of high medical financial burden. They found that the estimated prevalence increased among nonelderly adults with private insurance, decreased among nonelderly adults with public coverage, and decreased among elderly adults with Medicare and no private coverage. The authors concluded that improvements in the CPS changed the estimated prevalence of high medical financial burden among key subgroups, and they recommended that researchers use caution when tracking burden across the time-period in which these improvements were implemented.
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Hill SC, Solomon KT, Maclean JC .
Effects of improvements in the CPS on the estimated prevalence of medical financial burdens.
Health Serv Res 2019 Aug;54(4):920-29. doi: 10.1111/1475-6773.13158..
Keywords: Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Research Methodologies
Khandelwal N, White L, Curtis JR
Health insurance and out-of-pocket costs in the last year of life among decedents utilizing the ICU.
The objective of this study was to estimate out-of-pocket costs in the last year of life for individuals who required intensive care in the months prior to death and to examine how these costs vary by insurance coverage. Results showed that, across all categories of insurance coverage, out-of-pocket spending in the last 12 months of life was high and represented a significant portion of assets for many patients requiring intensive care and their families. Medicare fee-for-service alone did not insulate individuals from the financial burden of high-intensity care. Medicaid was found to provide the most complete hospital coverage of all the insurance groups, as well as significantly financing long-term care.
AHRQ-funded; HS022982.
Citation: Khandelwal N, White L, Curtis JR .
Health insurance and out-of-pocket costs in the last year of life among decedents utilizing the ICU.
Crit Care Med 2019 Jun;47(6):749-56. doi: 10.1097/ccm.0000000000003723..
Keywords: Critical Care, Elderly, Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Intensive Care Unit (ICU), Medicaid, Medicare
Callaghan BC, Reynolds E, Banerjee M
Out-of-pocket costs are on the rise for commonly prescribed neurologic medications.
The purpose of this study was to determine out-of-pocket costs for neurologic medications in 5 common neurologic diseases. The investigators concluded that out-of-pocket costs for neurologic medications have increased considerably over the last 12 years, particularly for those in high-deductible health plans. Out-of-pocket costs vary widely both across and within conditions. They assert that to minimize patient financial burden, neurologists require access to precise cost information when making treatment decisions.
AHRQ-funded; HS022258.
Citation: Callaghan BC, Reynolds E, Banerjee M .
Out-of-pocket costs are on the rise for commonly prescribed neurologic medications.
Neurology 2019 May 28;92(22):e2604-e13. doi: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000007564.
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Keywords: Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Medication, Neurological Disorders
Chien AT, Toomey SL, Kuo DZ
Care quality and spending among commercially insured children with disabilities.
Researchers examined the prevalence of children with disabilities (CWD) within a commercially insured population and compared outpatient care quality and annual health plan spending levels for CWD relative to children with complex medical conditions without disabilities; children with chronic conditions that are not complex; and children without disabling, complex, or chronic conditions. The cross-sectional study comprised over 1M person-years of Blue Cross Blue Shield Massachusetts data for beneficiaries aged from 1 to 19 years. The researchers found that CWD were prevalent in the commercially insured population, with these children experiencing suboptimal levels of care which were comparable to non-CWD groups. They concluded that improving the care value for CWD involves a deeper understanding of what higher spending delivers and additional aspects of care quality.
AHRQ-funded; HS025299.
Citation: Chien AT, Toomey SL, Kuo DZ .
Care quality and spending among commercially insured children with disabilities.
Acad Pediatr 2019 Apr;19(3):291-99. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2018.06.004..
Keywords: Quality of Care, Children/Adolescents, Disabilities, Healthcare Costs, Health Insurance
Post B, Ryan AM, Moloci NM
Physician participation in Medicare Accountable Care Organizations and spillovers in commercial spending.
The purpose of this retrospective, longitudinal study was to determine if physicians who participated in a Medicare Accountable Care Organization (ACO) reduced spending among their commercially insured patients in Michigan. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) claims data from 2010 to 2015 was used to compare patients who experienced a significant clinical episode and were seen by physicians who participated in a Medicare ACO with those whose physicians were not part of an ACO. The researchers conclude that physicians who participated in Medicare ACOs did not reduce spending among most of their commercially insured patients.
AHRQ-funded; HS024525; HS024728.
Citation: Post B, Ryan AM, Moloci NM .
Physician participation in Medicare Accountable Care Organizations and spillovers in commercial spending.
Med Care 2019 Apr;57(4):305-11. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000001081..
Keywords: Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Medicare
Mehra R, Cunningham SD, Lewis JB
Recommendations for the pilot expansion of Medicaid coverage for doulas in New York state.
AHRQ-funded; HS017589.
Citation: Mehra R, Cunningham SD, Lewis JB .
Recommendations for the pilot expansion of Medicaid coverage for doulas in New York state.
Am J Public Health 2019 Feb;109(2):217-19. doi: 10.2105/ajph.2018.304797..
Keywords: Medicaid, Pregnancy, Maternal Care, Health Insurance, Healthcare Costs, Prevention, Women, Disparities
Gordon SH, Sommers BD, Wilson IB
Risk factors for early disenrollment from Colorado's Affordable Care Act marketplace.
This study looked at risk factors for early disenrollment from Colorado’s Affordable Care Act marketplace. Researchers used all-payer claims data from individual market enrollees from 2014-2016. They discovered that nearly 25% Marketplace beneficiaries disenrolled midyear. The hazard rate of disenrollement was 30% lower in individuals with cost-sharing plans and 21% lower for those enrolled in gold plans compared to those enrolled in silver plans without cost-sharing subsidies. There was greater disenrollment in beneficiaries with greater hospital and emergency utilization before disenrollment. Also, young adults were 70% more likely to disenroll than older adults.
AHRQ-funded; HS025560.
Citation: Gordon SH, Sommers BD, Wilson IB .
Risk factors for early disenrollment from Colorado's Affordable Care Act marketplace.
Med Care 2019 Jan;57(1):49-53. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000001020..
Keywords: Healthcare Costs, Health Insurance, Policy, Risk, Uninsured