Medicaid patients get short shrift
A group of investigators wanted to see just how much influence payers have on the use of cardiac procedures for MI patients.1 They compared the use of invasive procedures, length of stay, and in-hospital mortality of 17,600 patients covered by HMOs, Medicaid, and fee-for-service insurance, and those uninsured. The following were findings for angiography:
Fee for service 86%
HMO 80%
Medicaid 61%
Uninsured 75%
Investigators saw similar patterns for revascularization. Lengths of stay - 7.3 days - were similar among all groups
Reference
1. Sada MJ, French WJ, Carlisle DM, et al. Influence of payor on use of invasive cardiac procedures and patient outcome after myocardial infarction in the United States. J Am Coll Cardiol 1998;31:1474-1480.
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