Program Administrative Costs Research Articles

PRS46 - Improved Health Care outcomes and Cost Savings for Asthma Through Targeted Home Interventions

PRS46 ImPRoved HealtH CaRe outComeS and CoSt SavIngS foR aStHma tHRougH taRgeted Home InteRventIonS Norlien K.G.1, Carlson A.M.2, York P.V.1 1Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, MN, USA, 2Data Intelligence Consultants, LLC, Eden Prairie, MN, USA Objectives: Studies have demonstrated the importance of the environment both on the development of asthma and on exacerbation of asthma symptoms in those who have been diagnosed with the disease. The goal of this project was to provide in-home asthma services that covered both self-management education and home environmental interventions for children diagnosed with asthma living in Section 8 Multi-family Housing. MethOds: This HUD-funded project consisted of 3-4 home visits by a public health nurse over a one year period—an in-home baseline visit; a visit to deliver allergen-reducing products if needed; and 6 and 12-month follow-ups by phone or in-home visit. Data was collected on asthma status (health-related quality of life and asthma control), health service utilization (hospitalizations, ED and office visits) and school and/or work absences due to asthma. Data analysis was completed using SAS v9.3. Results: 219 children from 161 low income families were enrolled from five participating local public health agencies in a large metropolitan area. The low cost interventions provided, resulted in significant increases in the proportion of enrollees experiencing minimal to no daytime and nighttime symptom burden and functional limitations at the 12-month follow-up (p< 0.05). Overall health care service use declined. There was a significant reduction in school days missed (p< 0.05), the equivalent of 5 school days per child per year. The average cost per family of interventions, was $424 (e.g. mattress and pillow encasements, HEPA vacuum cleaners, air purifiers). Program administrative costs per family were $585 (e.g. enrollment costs, travel time, visit time and documentation). cOnclusiOns: This study provided additional support for the usefulness and success of providing home interventions for low income children who have been diagnosed with asthma. Low cost, targeted interventions led to improvements in HRQOL, decreased health service utilization, increased school attendance and a positive return on investment.

Is expanding HPV vaccination programs to include school-aged boys likely to be value-for-money: a cost-utility analysis in a country with an existing school-girl program.

BackgroundSimilar to many developed countries, vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) is provided only to girls in New Zealand and coverage is relatively low (47% in school-aged girls for dose 3). Some jurisdictions have already extended HPV vaccination to school-aged boys. Thus, exploration of the cost-utility of adding boys’ vaccination is relevant. We modeled the incremental health gain and costs for extending the current girls-only program to boys, intensifying the current girls-only program to achieve 73% coverage, and extension of the intensive program to boys.MethodsA Markov macro-simulation model, which accounted for herd immunity, was developed for an annual cohort of 12-year-olds in 2011 and included the future health states of: cervical cancer, pre-cancer (CIN I to III), genital warts, and three other HPV-related cancers. In each state, health sector costs, including additional health costs from extra life, and quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) were accumulated. The model included New Zealand data on cancer incidence and survival, and other cause mortality (all by sex, age, ethnicity and deprivation).ResultsAt an assumed local willingness-to-pay threshold of US$29,600, vaccination of 12-year-old boys to achieve the current coverage for girls would not be cost-effective, at US$61,400/QALY gained (95% UI $29,700 to $112,000; OECD purchasing power parities) compared to the current girls-only program, with an assumed vaccine cost of US$59 (NZ$113). This was dominated though by the intensified girls-only program; US$17,400/QALY gained (95% UI: dominant to $46,100). Adding boys to this intensified program was also not cost-effective; US$128,000/QALY gained, 95% UI: $61,900 to $247,000).Vaccination of boys was not found to be cost-effective, even for additional scenarios with very low vaccine or program administration costs – only when combined vaccine and administration costs were NZ$125 or lower per dose was vaccination of boys cost-effective.ConclusionsThese results suggest that adding boys to the girls-only HPV vaccination program in New Zealand is highly unlikely to be cost-effective. In order for vaccination of males to become cost-effective in New Zealand, vaccine would need to be supplied at very low prices and administration costs would need to be minimised.

The Impact of Health Care Economics on Surgical Education

Just like the world economy in 2012, health care is in a state of flux. The current economic environment will impact not only current colorectal surgery residents, but also future generations of surgical trainees. To understand the economic impact of the current health care environment on colorectal surgery residencies, we need to know the basics of graduate medical education (GME) funding for all residents. Since the 1960s with the initiation of Medicare, the federal government through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has been the largest source of GME funding. There are two types of costs associated with GME. Direct GME (DME) funding covers costs directly attributed to the training of residents. These costs include residents' stipends, salaries, and benefits; cost of supervising faculty; direct program administration costs; overhead; and malpractice coverage. Indirect GME (IME) costs are payments to hospitals as an additional or add-on payment for the increased cost of care that is generally found in teaching hospitals. In 2010, President Barak Obama signed into law H.R. 3200, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). In 2011, the Supreme Court held that the majority of the PPACA is constitutional. Although the true impact of this bill is unknown, it will change the formula for Medicare GME reimbursement as well as shift unused residency positions to primary care.

El impacto del Bono Juancito Pinto. Un análisis a partir de microsimulaciones

El trabajo presenta una evaluación ex ante del Bono Juancito Pinto a partir del uso de técnicas de microsimulación. Específicamente, evalúa el impacto sobre la asistencia escolar, la pobreza y la desigualdad en la distribución del ingreso. Los resultados sugieren que el BJP ha tenido un impacto positivo en la reducción de la inasistencia escolar en el ciclo primario, ha colaborado en la reducción de los niveles de indigencia además de haber mejorado la distribución del ingreso -sobre todo en el sector rural del país. Posibles mejoras del BJP estarían vinculadas a diferenciar el monto transferido en función de la zona de residencia, lo que traería beneficios adicionales sin modificar significativamente los costos administrativos del programa.

Effect of an intervention to increase statin use in medicare members who qualified for a medication therapy management program.

The cardiovascular (CV) benefits of lipid-lowering therapy in older adults with hypercholesterolemia and underlying risk factors for coronary artery disease (CAD) have been well documented. Significant reductions in the risk of myocardial infarction (MI) and coronary death have been demonstrated with statin therapy, benefits that are of particular relevance in patients with diabetes. Managed care interventions with prescribers have increased the use of selected drugs such as statins. To (1) measure the increase in new users of statins associated with the implementation of a statin initiation intervention aimed at prescribers for Medicare Part D Medication Therapy Management Program (MTMP) members with diabetes or CAD and (2) estimate the potential cost savings associated with the projected reduction in CV events based on published controlled trials. Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MA-PD) and prescription drug plan (PDP) members of a pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) were identified for the intervention who (1) met the criteria for MTMP (expected to incur at least dollars 4,000 in annual pharmacy expenditures for Part D-covered medications, filled at least 10 distinct Part D-covered medications, and had at least 3 of 5 chronic diseases of interest); (2) were identified as having diabetes or CAD (patients with a history of MI were considered to have CAD); and (3) had no pharmacy claims for a statin between January and June 2006. In August 2006, the primary prescribers for antidiabetic or CV medications of 1,144 identified members were sent educational materials and a report listing their patients with diabetes or CAD who were not receiving statin therapy. A comparison group of MA-PD members (N = 700) with diabetes or CAD was identified who did not receive the intervention but who met all of the MTMP criteria except the presence of at least 3 of 5 chronic diseases of interest. Logistic regression was conducted to evaluate the intervention effectiveness after adjusting for age, gender, geography, and chronic disease score. To determine the implications of this intervention for routine practice, outcome measures included estimates of (1) the number of patient interventions necessary to prevent 1 major CV event and (2) the coronary event costs avoided by the intervention. The number of interventions necessary to prevent 1 major CV event was estimated by (1) calculating the number of members requiring interventions in order for 1 member to initiate statin therapy, based on the present study's findings, and then (2) calculating the number of statin initiations necessary to avoid a major CV event, based on clinical trial estimates of the effect of statin treatment on CV event rates. During the 4-month period following the intervention, 12.1% (n = 138) of the intervention members started a statin medication compared with 7.3% (n =51) of comparison members (P = 0.001). After covariate adjustment, the odds of initiating a statin medication were 65% higher (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.65; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.15-2.36; P = 0.006) in the intervention than in the comparison group. The estimated number of members requiring interventions to prevent 1 major CV event was 220. The estimated coronary event cost avoidance is dollars 12,323 per 220 members who received the intervention, after subtraction of program administrative costs and the cost of statin drug therapy. A statin initiation intervention aimed at prescribers for MA-PD and PDP members with diabetes or CAD who qualified for MTMP services was successful in increasing statin use among this group of members at high risk for CV events.

Initial results of the use of prescription order change forms to achieve dose form optimization (consolidation and tablet splitting) of SSRI antidepressants in a state Medicaid program.

One method to reduce drug costs is to promote dose form optimization strategies that take advantage of the flat pricing of some drugs, i.e., the same or nearly the same price for a 100 mg tablet and a 50 mg tablet of the same drug. Dose form optimization includes tablet splitting; taking half of a higher-strength tablet; and dose form consolidation, using 1 higher-strength tablet instead of 2 lower-strength tablets. Dose form optimization can reduce the direct cost of therapy by up to 50% while continuing the same daily dose of the same drug molecule. To determine if voluntary prescription change forms for antidepressant drugs could induce dosing changes and reduce the cost of antidepressant therapy in a Medicaid population. Specific regimens of 4 selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)- citalopram, escitalopram, paroxetine, and sertraline- were identified for conversion to half tablets or dose optimization. Change forms, which served as valid prescriptions, were faxed to Oregon prescribers in October 2004. The results from both the returned forms and subsequent drug claims data were evaluated using a segmented linear regression. Citalopram claims were excluded from the cost analysis because the drug became available in generic form in October 2004. A total of 1,582 change forms were sent to 556 unique prescribers; 9.2% of the change forms were for dose consolidation and 90.8% were for tablet splitting. Of the 1,118 change forms (70.7%) that were returned, 956 (60.4% of those sent and 85.5% of those returned) authorized a prescription change to a lower-cost dose regimen. The average drug cost per day declined by 14.2%, from Dollars 2.26 to Dollars 1.94 in the intervention group, versus a 1.6% increase, from Dollars 2.52 to Dollars 2.56, in the group without dose consolidation or tablet splitting of the 3 SSRIs (sertraline, escitalopram, and immediate-release paroxetine). Total drug cost for the 3 SSRIs declined by 35.6%, from Dollars 333,567 to Dollars 214,794, as a result of a 24.8% decline in the total days of SSRI drug therapy and the 14.2% decline in average SSRI drug cost per day. The estimated monthly cost avoidance from this intervention, based on pharmacy claims data, was approximately Dollars 35,285, about 2% of the entire spending on SSRI drugs each month, or about Dollars 0.09 per member per month. Program administration costs, excluding costs incurred by prescribers and pharmacy providers, were about 2% of SSRI drug cost savings. Voluntary prescription change forms appear to be an effective and well-accepted tool for obtaining dose form optimization through dose form consolidation and tablet splitting, resulting in reduction in the direct costs of SSRI antidepressant drug therapy with minimal additional program administration costs.

Case-Mix Reimbursement for Nursing Homes: Objectives and Achievements

Six state Medicaid programs currently use case-mix reimbursement (CMR) systems to pay nursing homes. Quality of care is not decreased under these payment systems and may actually have increased in some instances, while access for heavy-care Medicaid patients appears to have improved. As for equity of payment, CMR methods when compared with others tend to redistribute funds more in accord with resident care needs. Not all of the six states have made cost containment an explicit objective, and program administration costs typically increase. Since CMR systems primarily affect relative payments, however, they can be shaped to achieve total program expenditure objectives.