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Wright B, Akiyama J, Potter AJ, Sabik LM, Stehlin GG, Trivedi AN, Wolinsky FD. Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Hospital-Based Care Among Dual Eligibles Who Use Health Centers. Health Equity 2023; 7:9-18. [PMID: 36744239 PMCID: PMC9892926 DOI: 10.1089/heq.2022.0037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Introduction Health center use may reduce hospital-based care among Medicare-Medicaid dual eligibles, but racial and ethnic disparities in this population have not been widely studied. We examined the extent of racial and ethnic disparities in hospital-based care among duals using health centers and the degree to which disparities occur within or between health centers. Methods We used 2012-2018 Medicare claims and health center data to model emergency department (ED) visits, observation stays, hospitalizations, and 30-day unplanned returns as a function of race and ethnicity among dual eligibles using health centers. Results In rural and urban counties, age-eligible Black individuals had more ED visits (7.9 [4.0, 11.7] and 13.7 [10.0, 17.4] per 100 person-years) and were more likely to experience an unplanned return (1.4 [0.4, 2.4] and 1 [0.4, 1.6] percentage points [pp]) than White individuals, but were less likely to be hospitalized (-3.3 [-3.9, -2.8] and -1.2 [-1.6, -0.9] pp). In urban counties, age-eligible Black individuals were 1.2 [0.9, 1.5] pp more likely than White individuals to have observation stays. Other racial and ethnic groups used the same or less hospital-based care than White individuals. Including state and health center fixed effects eliminated Black versus White disparities in all outcomes, except hospitalization. Results were similar among disability-eligible duals. Conclusion Racial and ethnic disparities in hospital-based care among dual eligibles are less common within than between health centers. If health centers are to play a more central role in eliminating racial and ethnic health disparities, these differences across health centers must be understood and addressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brad Wright
- Department of Family Medicine, UNC-Chapel Hill School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.,Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.,*Address correspondence to: Brad Wright, PhD, Department of Health Services Policy and Management, Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Suite 355, Columbia, SC 29208, USA,
| | - Jill Akiyama
- Department of Health Policy and Management, Gillings School of Public Health, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Andrew J. Potter
- Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice, California State University, Chico, California, USA
| | - Lindsay M. Sabik
- Department of Health Policy and Management, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Grace G. Stehlin
- Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Amal N. Trivedi
- Department of Health Services, Policy and Practice, School of Public Health, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Fredric D. Wolinsky
- Department of Health Management and Policy, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
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