Reports Summarize Medicare Findings from Washington University (A Retrospective Cohort Study on Payor Type and the Effect on Revisions in Breast…

Managed Care Weekly Digest

Reports Summarize Medicare Findings from Washington University (A Retrospective Cohort Study on Payor Type and the Effect on Revisions in Breast Reconstruction)

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Managed Care Weekly Digest -- Investigators publish new report on Medicare and Medicaid - Medicare. According to news reporting originating in St. Louis, Missouri, by NewsRx journalists, research stated, "Patients who are insured by Medicare and Medicaid are less likely to undergo breast reconstruction than their privately insured counterparts. Whether insurance type also affects subsequent revisions remains unknown."

The news reporters obtained a quote from the research from Washington University, "This study explores the relationship among payor type, revision procedures, and the completion of breast reconstruction. A retrospective cohort study was created including patients who underwent breast reconstruction at the authors' institution from 1996 to 2016. Data collected included age, cancer stage, race, laterality, initial breast reconstruction type, total number of procedures, number of trips to the operating room, and subsequent revisions. Analysis of covariance and logistic regression were used to estimate the controlled mean number of revisions and probability of completion of reconstruction as a function of insurance type. A total of 3113 patients were included: 2271 (72.9 percent) with private insurance, 450 (14.5 percent) with Medicare, and 392 (12.6 percent) with Medicaid. On controlled analysis, there was no difference in total number of procedures, number of revisions, or number of trips to the operating room among the three insurance types. There was no difference in the proportion of patients undergoing symmetry procedures or nipple-areola reconstruction. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first study to evaluate discrepancies in number of procedures, revisions, and the proportion of patients completing breast reconstruction among insurance types. When controlling for other factors, the authors report no differences in care based solely on payor type."

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: "Instead, patient and surgeon variables may be responsible for the differences observed, and should be targeted in future research to improve equity."

For more information on this research see: A Retrospective Cohort Study on Payor Type and the Effect on Revisions in Breast Reconstruction. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, 2017;140(4):527E-537E. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery can be contacted at: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Two Commerce Sq, 2001 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA. (Lippincott Williams and Wilkins - www.lww.com; Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery - journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/pages/default.aspx)

Our news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained by contacting T.M. Myckatyn, Washington University, Sch Med, Div Plast & Reconstruct Surg, St Louis, MO, United States. Additional authors for this research include K. Sharma, D.W. Grant, D.W. Buck and E.B. Odom (see also Medicare and Medicaid - Medicare).

Keywords for this news article include: St. Louis, Missouri, United States, North and Central America, Medicare and Medicaid, Health Policy, Washington University.