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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 6 of 6 Research Studies DisplayedEliason EL, Agostino J, Vivier P
Infant health care disruptions by race and ethnicity, income, and insurance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This cross-sectional study examined the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on infant health care, and broke it down by race and ethnicity, income, and insurance type. This study used the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System COVID-19 supplement with data from 29 jurisdictions to examine infant health care disruptions due to the pandemic: 1) well visits/checkups canceled or delayed, 2) well visits/checkups changed to virtual appointments, and 3) postponed immunizations. The authors found that among 12,053 parental respondents with infants born from April to December 2020, 7.25% reported cancelations or delays in infant well visits/checkups, 5.49% reported changes to virtual infant care appointments, and 5.33% reported postponing immunizations, with significant differences by race and ethnicity, income, and insurance type. They found higher odds of canceling/delaying visits and postponing immunizations among non-Hispanic Black infants and infants whose parents were uninsured or had Medicaid-paid deliveries. The odds of switching to virtual appointments was also significantly higher among Hispanic infants and infants whose parents had Medicaid-paid deliveries.
AHRQ-funded; HS000011.
Citation: Eliason EL, Agostino J, Vivier P .
Infant health care disruptions by race and ethnicity, income, and insurance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Acad Pediatr 2024 Jan-Feb; 24(1):105-10. doi: 10.1016/j.acap.2023.07.005..
Keywords: Newborns/Infants, Racial and Ethnic Minorities, COVID-19, Access to Care, Uninsured, Health Insurance, Healthcare Delivery
Daw JR, Yekta S, Jacobson-Davies FE
Consistency and adequacy of public and commercial health insurance for US children, 2016 to 2021.
This study used the 2016 to 2021 National Survey of Children’s Health to compare overall rates, COVID-19 public health emergency-related changes, and child and family characteristics associated with inconsistent and inadequate coverage for publicly and commercially insured children. The authors were looking at inconsistent insurance, defined by failure to meet 3 criteria: (1) benefits usually/always sufficient to meet child's needs; (2) coverage usually/always allows child to access needed health care practitioners; and (3) no or usually/always reasonable annual out-of-pocket payments for child's health care. Of this nationally representative sample of 203,691 insured children, 34.5% were publicly insured (mean age 8.4 [4.1] years; 47.4% female) and 65.5% were commercially insured (mean age, 8.7 [5.6]; 49.1% female). Most publicly insured children were either non-Hispanic Black (20.9%) or Hispanic (36.4%); living with 2 married parents (38.4%) or a single parent (33.1%); and had a household income less than 200% of the federal poverty level (79%); and most commercially insured children were non-Hispanic White (62.8%), living with 2 married parents (79.0%); and had a household income of 400% of the federal poverty level or higher (49.1%). Compared with commercially insured children, publicly insured children had higher rates of inconsistent coverage (4.2% vs 1.4%; difference, 2.7 percentage points [pp]) and lower rates of inadequate coverage (12.2% vs 33.0%; difference). Compared with the period from 2016 to 2019, inconsistent insurance decreased by 42% for publicly insured children and inadequate insurance decreased by 6% for commercially insured children during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) (2020-2021).
AHRQ-funded; HS029159.
Citation: Daw JR, Yekta S, Jacobson-Davies FE .
Consistency and adequacy of public and commercial health insurance for US children, 2016 to 2021.
JAMA Health Forum 2023 Nov; 4(11):e234179. doi: 10.1001/jamahealthforum.2023.4179..
Keywords: Children/Adolescents, Health Insurance, COVID-19
Eliason E, Admon LK, Steenland MW
Late postpartum coverage loss before COVID-19: implications for Medicaid unwinding.
The purpose of this study was to explore the loss of Medicaid coverage in toward the end of the postpartum period prior to COVID-19 and describe the implications for Medicaid unwinding. The researchers utilized unique Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System follow-up data from prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found that only 68% of enrollees in prenatal Medicaid maintained continuous Medicaid coverage through 9 or 10 months postpartum. Of the total prenatal Medicaid enrollees who lost their coverage in the early postpartum period, two-thirds continued to be uninsured 9 to 10 months postpartum. The researchers concluded that extensions to state postpartum Medicaid could prevent a return to postpartum coverage loss rates similar to the level in the prepandemic period.
AHRQ-funded; HS027464; HS000011.
Citation: Eliason E, Admon LK, Steenland MW .
Late postpartum coverage loss before COVID-19: implications for Medicaid unwinding.
Health Aff 2023 Jul; 42(7):966-72. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2022.01659..
Keywords: COVID-19, Maternal Care, Medicaid, Women, Access to Care, Uninsured, Health Insurance
Jacobs PD, Moriya AS
AHRQ Author: Jacobs PD, Moriya AS
Changes in health coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This AHRQ-authored paper used data from MEPS to examine patterns of health insurance coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors compared the proportion of people whose source of coverage changed from 2019 to 2020 with the proportion of people whose source changed from 2018 to 2019. The sample was limited to those who were interviewed in both 2018 and 2019 or in both 2019 and 2020. The analysis looked at people aged 63 or younger in the first year of the sample. The authors found increased stability for children and nonelderly adults during the first year of the pandemic. Fewer people who had Medicaid in 2019 became uninsured in 2020 (4.3%) than in 2018-19 (7.8%). Residents of Medicaid expansion states who were enrolled in 2019 were less likely to become uninsured in 2020 (3.6%) than was the case in the 2018-2019 period (6.0%). This was also true in non-Medicaid expansion states (6.6% vs 12.4%). However, residents of expansion states were more likely to become enrolled in Medicaid in 2020 if they were previously uninsured in 2019 (21.5%) compared with 2018-2019 (15.3%). For nonexpansion states, there was no detectable change in the percentage transitioning from uninsured to Medicaid over the two time periods (8.5% compared with 6.9%).
AHRQ-authored.
Citation: Jacobs PD, Moriya AS .
Changes in health coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Health Affairs 2023 May; 42(5):721-26. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.2022.01469..
Keywords: Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), COVID-19, Health Insurance, Medicaid, Access to Care
Eliason EL, Daw JR, Steenland MW
Changes in postpartum insurance coverage in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The purpose of this study was to examine changes in postpartum insurance loss or changes (churn) in Medicaid-insured pregnant people during the COVID-19 pandemic. The researchers utilized the 2019 to 2021 Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement
(CPS-ASEC), with an annual sample size of approximately 98,000 households. The study covered 3 time periods: prepandemic (2019), early pandemic (2020), and pandemic (2021), and included female respondents aged 18 to 44 years who were living with a child
younger than 1 year at the time. Coverage was assigned to one of three categories: private, Medicaid, or uninsured. Churn was defined as loss of insurance or changes in insurance type between current insurance and insurance in the previous year. The study found that in 2019 (before the pandemic), among postpartum respondents with Medicaid during the last year, 88.2% had consistent Medicaid, 10.3% lost coverage, and 1.6%switched to private coverage. In 2021 (during the pandemic), consistent Medicaid increased by 6.8 percentage points and Medicaid-uninsured churn decreased by 6.6 percentage points representing a 64% decline from 2019. The researchers concluded that postpartum insurance loss decreased during the pandemic, primarily associated with large increases in consistent Medicaid coverage, and that these findings suggest that the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which prevented Medicaid disenrollment, was associated with substantial reductions in postpartum Medicaid loss.
(CPS-ASEC), with an annual sample size of approximately 98,000 households. The study covered 3 time periods: prepandemic (2019), early pandemic (2020), and pandemic (2021), and included female respondents aged 18 to 44 years who were living with a child
younger than 1 year at the time. Coverage was assigned to one of three categories: private, Medicaid, or uninsured. Churn was defined as loss of insurance or changes in insurance type between current insurance and insurance in the previous year. The study found that in 2019 (before the pandemic), among postpartum respondents with Medicaid during the last year, 88.2% had consistent Medicaid, 10.3% lost coverage, and 1.6%switched to private coverage. In 2021 (during the pandemic), consistent Medicaid increased by 6.8 percentage points and Medicaid-uninsured churn decreased by 6.6 percentage points representing a 64% decline from 2019. The researchers concluded that postpartum insurance loss decreased during the pandemic, primarily associated with large increases in consistent Medicaid coverage, and that these findings suggest that the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which prevented Medicaid disenrollment, was associated with substantial reductions in postpartum Medicaid loss.
AHRQ-funded; HS000011; HS027464.
Citation: Eliason EL, Daw JR, Steenland MW .
Changes in postpartum insurance coverage in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic.
JAMA Health Forum 2022 Apr;3(4):e220688. doi: 10.1001/jamahealthforum.2022.0688..
Keywords: COVID-19, Health Insurance, Maternal Care, Women, Pregnancy
Anderson KE, Shugarman LR, Davenport K
Regulation of provider networks in response to COVID-19.
The authors anticipate that the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic will have 3 main effects on provider networks and their regulation: enrollment changes, changes to the provider landscape, and changes to care delivery. They suggested that telehealth will have a larger role in care delivery than in the pre-pandemic period, and that regulators will need to adapt network standards to accommodate in-person and virtual care delivery.
AHRQ-funded; HS000029.
Citation: Anderson KE, Shugarman LR, Davenport K .
Regulation of provider networks in response to COVID-19.
Am J Manag Care 2021 Apr;27(4):e101-e04. doi: 10.37765/ajmc.2021.88614..
Keywords: Health Insurance, Policy, Access to Care, Healthcare Delivery, COVID-19