Studies from Aetna Foundation Further Understanding of Medicare and Medicaid [Quality of Care for Chronic Conditions Among Disabled Medicaid…

Studies from Aetna Foundation Further Understanding of Medicare and Medicaid [Quality of Care for Chronic Conditions Among Disabled Medicaid Enrollees An Evaluation of a 1915 (b) and © Waiver Program]

By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Weekly News -- Data detailed on Medicare and Medicaid have been presented. According to news originating from Hartford, Connecticut, by VerticalNews correspondents, research stated, "Importance:Examining the impact of Medicaid-managed care home-based and community-based service (HCBS) alternatives to institutional care is critical given the recent rapid expansion of these models nationally. We analyzed the effects of STAR+PLUS, a Texas Medicaid-managed care HCBS waiver program for adults with disabilities on the quality of chronic disease care."

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from Aetna Foundation, "We compared quality before and after a mandatory transition of disabled Medicaid enrollees older than 21 years from fee-for-service (FFS) or primary care case management (PCCM) to STAR+PLUS in 28 counties, relative to enrollees in counties remaining in the FFS or PCCM models.Measures and Analysis:Person-level claims and encounter data for 2006-2010 were used to compute adherence to 6 quality measures. With county as the independent sampling unit, we employed a longitudinal linear mixed-model analysis accounting for administrative clustering and geographic and individual factors. Although quality was similar among programs at baseline, STAR+PLUS enrollees experienced large and sustained improvements in use of -blockers after discharge for heart attack (49% vs. 81% adherence posttransition; P<0.01) and appropriate use of systemic corticosteroids and bronchodilators after a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease event (39% vs. 68% adherence posttransition; P<0.0001) compared with FFS/PCCM enrollees. No statistically significant effects were identified for quality measures for asthma, diabetes, or cardiovascular disease."

According to the news editors, the research concluded: "In 1 large Medicaid-managed care HCBS program, the quality of chronic disease care linked to acute events improved while that provided during routine encounters appeared unaffected."

For more information on this research see: Quality of Care for Chronic Conditions Among Disabled Medicaid Enrollees An Evaluation of a 1915 (b) and © Waiver Program. Medical Care, 2015;53(7):599-606. Medical Care can be contacted at: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Two Commerce Sq, 2001 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA. (Lippincott Williams and Wilkins - www.lww.com; Medical Care - journals.lww.com/lww-medicalcare/pages/default.aspx)

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from M.P. Wegman, Aetna Fdn, Hartford, CT, United States. Additional authors for this research include J.B. Herndon, K.E. Muller, G.N. Graham, W.B. Vogel, K.H. Case, J.A. Lee, M.F. Van Voorhis and E.A. Shenkman.

Keywords for this news article include: Hartford, Connecticut, United States, Health Policy, Quality of Care, Medicare and Medicaid, North and Central America

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