Investigators at University of Tennessee Discuss Findings in Managed Care (An Age Group Comparison of Concurrent Hospice Care): Managed Care

2024 AUG 08 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- New research on Managed Care is the subject of a report. According to news reporting out of Knoxville, Tennessee, by NewsRx editors, research stated, “This study aimed to examine the cost-effectiveness of concurrent hospice care compared with standard care among pediatric patients of different age groups. Using a national Medicaid database of 18 152 pediatric patients enrolled in hospice care between 2011 and 2013, this study calculated and analyzed incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for concurrent care versus standard hospice care for children of 4 age categories: <1 year, 1 to 5 years, 6 to 14 years, and 15 to 20 years.”

Financial support for this research came from NIH National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR).

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the University of Tennessee, “The results indicated that the total Medicaid cost of hospice care was $3229 per patient per month (PPPM; SD, $8709) for those younger than 1 year, $4793 PPPM (SD, $8178) for those aged 1 to 5 years, $5411 PPPM (SD, $7456) for those aged 6 to 14 years, and $5625 PPPM (SD, $11459) for those aged 15 to 20 years. Incremental cost-effectiveness ratio values across all age groups showed that children enrolled in concurrent care had fewer live discharges but at a higher Medicaid cost of care as compared with those enrolled in standard hospice care. Concurrent hospice care was the most cost-effective in the age groups of <1 year and 1 to 5 years, with ICERs equal to $45 (95% confidence interval [CI], $23-$66) and $49 (95% CI, $8-$76), respectively. For the other older age groups, benefits of enrollment in concurrent care came at a much higher cost: in the age group of 6 to 14 years, ICER was equal to $217 (95% CI, $129-$217), and in the age group of 15 to 20 years, it was $107 (95% CI, $82-$183).”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Concurrent hospice is an effective way to reduce live discharges but has a higher total Medicaid cost than standard hospice care.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: An Age Group Comparison of Concurrent Hospice Care. Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing, 2024;26(4):219-223. Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing can be contacted at: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Two Commerce Sq, 2001 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA. (Lippincott Williams and Wilkins - www.lww.com; Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing - http://journals.lww.com/jhpn/pages/default.aspx)

Our news journalists report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Radion Svynarenko, University of Tennessee, College of Nursing, 1412 Circle Dr, Knoxville, TN 37996, United States. Additional authors for this research include Lisa C. Lindley and Melanie J. Cozad.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1097/NJH.0000000000001037. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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