New Managed Care Data Have Been Reported by Researchers at Cambridge Health Alliance (Examining Racial/ethnic Disparities In Tobacco Dependence Treatment Among Medicaid Beneficiaries Using Fifty State Medicaid Claims, 2009-2014): Managed Care

2023 JUL 13 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Research findings on Managed Care are discussed in a new report. According to news reporting originating from Cambridge, Massachusetts, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “In the USA, low-income racial/ethnic minority groups experience higher smoking rates and greater smoking-related disease burden than their White counterparts. Despite the adverse effects, racial/ethnic minorities are less likely to access tobacco dependence treatment (TDT).”

Financial support for this research came from NIH National Cancer Institute (NCI).

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from Cambridge Health Alliance, “Medicaid is one of the largest payers of TDT in the USA and covers predominantly low-income populations. The extent of TDT use among beneficiaries from distinct racial/ethnic groups is unknown. The objective is to estimate racial/ethnic differences in TDT use among Medicaid fee-for-service beneficiaries. Using a retrospective study design and 50 state (including the District of Columbia) Medicaid claims (2009-2014), we employed multivariable logistic regression models and predictive margin methods to estimate TDT use rates among adults (18-64) enrolled (>= 11 months) in Medicaid fee-for-service programs (January 2009-December 2014) by race/ethnicity. The population included White (n = 6,536,004), Black (n = 3,352,983), Latinx (n = 2,264,647), Asian (n = 451,448), and Native American/Alaskan Native (n = 206,472) beneficiaries. Dichotomous outcomes reflected service use in the past year. Any TDT use was operationalized as any smoking cessation medication fill, any smoking cessation counseling visit, or any smoking cessation outpatient visit. In secondary analyses, we disaggregated TDT use into three separate outcomes. Results suggested that Black (10.6%; 95% CI = 9.9-11.4%), Latinx (9.5%; 95% CI = 8.9-10.2%), Asian (3.7%; 95% CI = 3.4-4.1%), and Native American/Alaskan Native (13.7%; 95% CI = 12.7-14.7%) beneficiaries had lower TDT use rates compared to White beneficiaries (20.6%). Similar racial/ethnic treatment disparities were identified across all outcomes.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “By identifying significant racial/ethnic disparities in TDT use between 2009 and 2014, this study provides a benchmark against which to measure recent interventions in state Medicaid programs improving equity in smoking cessation interventions.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: Examining Racial/ethnic Disparities In Tobacco Dependence Treatment Among Medicaid Beneficiaries Using Fifty State Medicaid Claims, 2009-2014. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities, 2023. Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities can be contacted at: Springer Int Publ Ag, Gewerbestrasse 11, Cham, Ch-6330, Switzerland.

The news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Michael William Flores, Cambridge Health Alliance, Hlth Equ Res Lab, 1035 Cambridge St, Suite 26, Cambridge, MA 02141, United States. Additional authors for this research include Brian Mullin, Amanda Sharp, Anika Kumar, Margo Moyer and Benjamin Le Cook.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40615-023-01558-w. 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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