PIN31 - Evaluation Of The Clinical Characteristics And Economic Burden Of United States Veteran Patients Diagnosed With The Hepatitis C Virus

Abstract

To assess the clinical characteristics and economic burden of patients diagnosed with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the US veteran population. Patients diagnosed with HCV (International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification code: 070.41, 070.44, 070.51, 070.54, and V02.62.) were selected from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) database (October 1, 2010-September 30, 2014). The first observed diagnosis date was defined as the index date. Continuous medical and pharmacy benefits were required for 12 months pre- and post-index date. The top ten most common comorbidities were calculated for the 12-month baseline period. The 10 most commonly prescribed medications for 60 days post-index date were calculated. Health care resource utilization (inpatient, outpatient, and pharmacy), and costs (inpatient, outpatient, pharmacy, and total costs) were assessed for the 12-month follow-up period. Descriptive statistics were calculated as means ± standard deviation (SD) and percentages to measure treatment, cost, and utilization distribution in the sample. A total of 95,937 veterans were diagnosed with HCV during the study period. Among the most common baseline comorbidities, hypertension was the only condition comprising more than 20% of patients. Patients were diagnosed with other comorbid disorders including diabetes (11.99%), depressive disorder (10.32%), post-traumatic stress disorder (10.00%), and lumbago (9.31%). The most commonly prescribed medications were omeprazole (17.50%), lisinopril (16.60%), amlodipine besylate (12.05%), aspirin (10.91%), and gabapentin (9.86%). The percentage of inpatient stays (25.17%), outpatient visits (99.88%), and pharmacy visits (93.86%) were also calculated. HCV patients incurred $11,860 (SD=$43,927) in inpatient, $13,547 (SD=$19,023) in outpatient, and $3,002 (SD=$11,391) in pharmacy costs. Total expenditures were observed to be $28,409 (SD=$54,516). HCV treatment is complicated by the presence of comorbidities, hypertension in particular. HCV was associated with high inpatient and outpatient visit utilization, resulting in a high cost burden.