How does your state compare?
According to data recently released by the General Accounting Office in Washington, DC, Louisiana leads all other states with the greatest number of home health users per 1,000 beneficiaries at 61, and with the greatest number of visits per user at 42.
A state-by-state comparison of home health utilization from January to June 2001 breaks down the number of users, the number of visits per user, the number of visits per episode, the number of users with one episode, and the number of users with multiple episodes.
Data from Medicare provider claims and beneficiary files for the 2001 calendar year, which was available as of Jan. 24, 2002, were used to produce the chart. Episodes were defined as periods of care that comprise four or fewer visits for which the home health agency received a low utilization payment adjustment.
To determine the share of home health users with multiple episodes, claims data was used to identify all beneficiaries who had an episode that ended in the first three months of the year and then received additional episodes of care during the first six months of 2001.
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