Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing This is an RSS file. You can use it to subscribe to this data in your favourite RSS reader or to display this data on your own website or blog.

Explaining Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Use of High-Volume Hospitals: Decision-Making Complexity and Local Hospital Environments
Racial/ethnic minorities are less likely to use higher-quality hospitals than whites. We propose that a higher level of information-related complexity in their local hospital environments compounds the effects of discrimination and more limited access to services, contributing to racial/ethnic disparities in hospital use. While minorities live closer than whites to high-volume hospitals, minorities also face greater choice complexity and live in neighborhoods with lower levels of medical experience. Our empirical results reveal that it is generally the overall context associated with proximity, choice complexity, and local...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - October 14, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Kronebusch, K., Gray, B. H., Schlesinger, M. Tags: Article Source Type: research

What Fraction of Medicaid Enrollees Have Private Insurance Coverage at the Time of Enrollment? Estimates from Administrative Data
We use administrative data from Wisconsin to determine the fraction of new Medicaid enrollees who have private health insurance at the time of enrollment in the program. Through the linkage of several administrative data sources not previously used for research, we are able to observe coverage status directly for a large fraction of enrollees and indirectly for the remainder. We provide strict bounds for the percentages in each status and find that the percentage of new enrollees with private insurance coverage at the time of enrollment lies between 16 percent and 29 pe...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - October 14, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Dague, L., DeLeire, T., Friedsam, D., Leininger, L., Meier, S., Voskuil, K. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Does Government Oversight Improve Access to Nursing Home Care? Longitudinal Evidence From US Counties
Gains in life expectancy around the world have increasingly placed pressure on governments to ensure that the elderly receive assistance with activities of daily living. This research examines the impact of government oversight of Medicaid payment policies on access to nursing home care services in the United States. Variation in price levels induced by a federal policy shift in 1997 is used to identify the effect of Medicaid reimbursements on the number of nursing homes and beds available. Court rulings prior to the policy change are used to categorically define a range of oversight treatments at the state level. Differen...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Howard, L. L. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Ebola Crisis in the United States: A Glimpse of Its Larger Shadow
This article is about readiness of the U.S. health care system to deal with crises. Using the Ebola crisis as a reference, first it examines the response to the current challenge. However, that is the smaller objective of the article. Lately, we are also being challenged to deal with other kinds of epidemics like obesity, mental health diseases, and violence. These crises are not dramatic like the Ebola crisis. However, these are no less insidious than Ebola. If we are not ready for them, then these crises have the potential to undermine the long-term health and prosperity of our society. In this context, and therefore mai...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Patwardhan, A. R. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Varied Differences in the Health Status Between Medicare Advantage and Fee-for-Service Enrollees
This article examines the differences in mortality measured health status between the Medicare Advantage (MA) program and Fee-for-Service (FFS) program from 1999 to 2007. At the national level, differences in mortality rates were associated with MA market share. In some counties, enrollees in the MA program were 40% less likely to die than their peers in the FFS program, but in other counties, they were 20% more likely to die. Cost shifting between the two programs could bias county classifications of average FFS spending, and enlarged disparities in health status could make it difficult to evaluate risk adjusters. (Source...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Song, Y. Tags: Article Source Type: research

A News Media Analysis of the Economic and Reputational Penalties of the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program
This study investigates whether readmission penalties under HRRP impose significant reputational effects on hospitals. Data extracted from 2012 to 2013 news stories suggest that the higher the actual penalty, the higher the perceived cost of the penalty, the more likely it is that hospitals will state they have no control over the low-income patients they serve or that they will describe themselves as safety net providers. The downside of being singled out as a low-quality hospital deserving a relatively high penalty seems to be larger than the upside of being singled out as a high-quality hospital facing a relatively low ...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Winborn, M. S., Alencherril, J., Pagan, J. A. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Effects of Changes in Ownership of the Polish Hospital on the Patients' Opinion About Its Functioning
System changes in health care centers have been directed at introducing such marketing elements into the Polish health care system as managerial approach to managing the centers and contracting medical services and quality management. High quality of the medical services and patients’ satisfaction became the key factors deciding about "the brand" of a health care center. The aim of the work was to assess the effect of changes in ownership of the hospital on the patients’ opinion about its functioning. Patients’ satisfaction survey was carried out through an anonymous questionnaire among 2702 respondents b...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Stelmach, W., Kuzdak, M., Rzeznicki, A., Stelmach, I., Kowalska, A., Krakowiak, J. Tags: Case Study Source Type: research

The Impact of Global Budgets on Pharmaceutical Spending and Utilization: Early Experience From the Alternative Quality Contract
In 2009, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts implemented a global budget-based payment system, the Alternative Quality Contract (AQC), in which provider groups assumed accountability for spending. We investigate the impact of global budgets on the utilization of prescription drugs and related expenditures. Our analyses indicate no statistically significant evidence that the AQC reduced the use of drugs. Although the impact may change over time, early evidence suggests that it is premature to conclude that global budget systems may reduce access to medications. (Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, ...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Afendulis, C. C., Fendrick, A. M., Song, Z., Landon, B. E., Safran, D. G., Mechanic, R. E., Chernew, M. E. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Use Patterns of a State Health Care Price Transparency Web Site: What Do Patients Shop For?
We examined the use of New Hampshire HealthCost over a 3-year period. Approximately 1% of the state’s residents used the Web site, and the most common searches were for outpatient visits, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or computed tomography (CT) scans, and emergency department visits. The results provide a cautionary note on the level of potential interest among consumers in this information but may guide others on practically what are the most "shop-able" services for patients. (Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing)
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Mehrotra, A., Brannen, T., Sinaiko, A. D. Tags: Research Letter Source Type: research

Children's Emotional and Behavioral Problems and Their Mothers' Labor Supply
This article estimates the effects of children’s EBP on their mothers’ labor supply by family structure while accounting for endogeneity in children’s health. We used the 1997 and 2002 Child Development Supplements (CDS) to the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). We used probit and bivariate probit models to estimate mothers’ probability of employment, and tobit and instrumental variable tobit models to estimate the effects of children’s EBP on their mothers’ work hours. Findings show negative effects of children’s EBP on their married mothers’ employment and on their sing...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Richard, P., Gaskin, D. J., Alexandre, P. K., Burke, L. S., Younis, M. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Individualized Health Care: Moving From Population Health to Care of the One
(Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing)
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Angstman, K. B. Tags: Commentary Source Type: research

Response Error in Reporting Dental Coverage by Older Americans in the Health and Retirement Study
This study offers evidence for the need to validate self-reports of dental insurance coverage among a survey population of older Americans to obtain more accurate estimates of coverage and its impact on dental utilization. (Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing)
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Moeller, J. F., Manski, R. J., Mathiowetz, N. A., Campbell, N., Pepper, J. V. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Disparities in Physician-Patient Communication by Obesity Status
This study aimed to examine variations in patient-physician communication by obesity status. We pooled data from the 2005-2007 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS),_included only individuals who completed the self-administered questionnaire themselves, and restricted the sample to patients who received care from primary care physicians. We included a total of 6,628 unique individuals between the ages of 18 and 65 who had at least one office or hospital outpatient visit during the past 12 months. There are six outcomes of interest in this study. The patient-physician communication composite score is based on five questio...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - January 1, 2014 Category: Health Management Authors: Richard, P., Ferguson, C., Lara, A. S., Leonard, J., Younis, M. Tags: Article Source Type: research

Perceived Community Commitment of Hospitals: An Exploratory Analysis of Its Potential Influence on Hospital Choice and Health Care System Distrust
Hospitals assume broad social roles in their communities as major health service institutions, large employers, and in some cases as philanthropic organizations. These roles create perceptions about the community commitment of hospitals to a local community. How these perceptions toward hospitals influence patients’ decisions in choosing a hospital for care and trust in the health care system more generally has not been explored. As part of a study examining distrust in health care, we conducted a survey of African American and white non-Latino adults in metropolitan areas. We found that patients with very favorable ...
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - November 1, 2013 Category: Health Management Authors: Grande, D., Shea, J. A., Armstrong, K. Tags: Research Papers Source Type: research

Differential Responses among Primary Care Physicians to Varying Medicaid Fees
In this study, I use non-linear multivariate regression techniques and data from nationally representative physician surveys and periodic Medicaid fee surveys to investigate heterogeneity in the effects of such increases. I find that the PCPs more responsive to Medicaid fee changes are those who see fewer Medicaid patients typically. I also estimate effects associated with Medicaid fee increases comparable with the ACA’s fee changes. (Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing)
Source: Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing - November 1, 2013 Category: Health Management Authors: Wilk, A. S. Tags: Research Papers Source Type: research