Disparity Implications of Medicare Eligibility Criteria for Medication Therapy Management Services

Objective. To determine whether there would be racial and ethnic disparities in meeting eligibility criteria for medication therapy management (MTM) services implemented in 2006 for Medicare beneficiaries. Data Sources/Study Setting. Secondary data analyses of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (2004–2005). Study Design. Logistic regression and recycled predictions were used to test the disparities in meeting eligibility criteria across racial and ethnic groups. The eligibility thresholds used by health plans in 2006 and new thresholds recommended for 2010 were examined. Racial and ethnic disparities were examined by comparing non‐Hispanic blacks (blacks) with non‐Hispanic whites (whites) and comparing Hispanics with whites, respectively. Disparities were also examined among individuals with severe health problems. Principal Findings. According to 2006 thresholds, the adjusted odds ratios for meeting eligibility criteria for blacks and Hispanics to whites were 0.36–0.60 (p<.05) and 0.13–0.46 (p<.05), respectively. Blacks and Hispanics would be 21–34 and 32–38 percent, respectively, less likely to be eligible than whites according to recycled predictions. Similar patterns were found using the 2010 eligibility thresholds and among individuals with severe health problems. Conclusions. There would be racial and ethnic disparities in meeting MTM eligibility criteria. Future research is warranted to confirm the findings using data after MTM implementation.     

Effects of the Medicare Part D Comprehensive Medication Review on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Medication Adherence

BackgroundSubstantial research has documented inequalities between US minorities and whites in meeting the eligibility criteria for the Medicare Part D medication therapy management (MTM) program. Even though the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services attempted to relax the eligibility criteria, a critical barrier to effective MTM reform is a lack of stronger evidence about the effects of MTM on minorities'' health outcomes.ObjectiveTo examine the effects of comprehensive medication review (CMR), an MTM core component, on racial and ethnic disparities in adherence to diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia medications among Medicare beneficiaries aged ≥65 years.MethodsThis study used full-year 2017 Medicare Parts A, B, and D claims data, including MTM data, linked to the Area Health Resources Files. Racial and ethnic disparities in nonadherence to diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia medications were compared between CMR recipients and nonrecipients matched by their propensity scores. To determine the changes in racial and ethnic disparities after receiving CMR, a difference-in-differences framework was applied, by including in logistic regression analyses interaction terms between dummy variables for CMR receipt and each racial or ethnic minority group.ResultsCompared with CMR nonrecipients, CMR recipients had significantly lower racial and ethnic disparities across the 3 outcome measures, with the exception of the difference between whites and blacks in nonadherence to diabetes medications. For example, compared with CMR nonrecipients, among CMR recipients the differences in the odds of nonadherence to hypertension medications were reduced, respectively, by 8% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.88–0.96) between whites and blacks; by 18% (95% CI, 0.78–0.86) between whites and Hispanics; by 16% (95% CI, 0.77–0.91) between whites and Asians; and by 9% (95% CI, 0.85–0.98) between whites and other racial and ethnic groups.ConclusionReceiving a CMR reduced the racial and ethnic disparities in adherence to diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia medications among Medicare beneficiaries aged ≥65 years. These findings provide critical empirical evidence that may inform the future design of the Medicare Part D MTM program, which is valuable for improving pharmacotherapy outcomes and could further realize its potential when additional people from racial and ethnic minorities are enrolled.     

Cost-Effectiveness of Medication Therapy Management Program Across Racial and Ethnic Groups Among Medicare Beneficiaries

ObjectivesEquity and effectiveness of the medication therapy management (MTM) program in Medicare has been a policy focus since its inception. The objective of this study was to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the Medicare MTM program in improving medication utilization quality across racial and ethnic groups.MethodsThis study analyzed 2017 Medicare data linked to the Area Health Recourses File. A propensity score was used to match MTM enrollees and nonenrollees, and an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio between the 2 groups was calculated. Effectiveness was measured as the proportion of appropriate medication utilization based on medication utilization measures developed by Pharmacy Quality Alliance. Net monetary benefits were compared across racial and ethnic groups at various societal willingness-to-pay (WTP) thresholds. The 95% confidence intervals were obtained by nonparametric bootstrapping.ResultsMTM dominated non-MTM among the total sample (N = 699 992), as MTM enrollees had lower healthcare costs ($31 135.89 vs $32 696.69) and higher proportions of appropriate medication utilization (87.47% vs 85.31%) than nonenrollees. MTM enrollees had both lower medication costs ($10 681.21 vs $11 003.08) and medical costs ($20 454.68 vs $21 693.61) compared with nonenrollees. The cost-effectiveness of MTM was higher among Black patients than White patients across the WTP thresholds. For instance, at a WTP of $3006 per percentage point increase in effectiveness, the net monetary benefit for Black patients was greater than White patients by $2334.57 (95% confidence interval $1606.53-$3028.85).ConclusionsMTM is cost-effective in improving medication utilization quality among Medicare beneficiaries and can potentially reduce disparities between Black and White patients. Expansion of the current MTM program could maximize these benefits.     

美国医疗保险药物治疗管理的介绍

目的:介绍美国药物治疗管理的主要内容.方法:利用文献材料采用综述方法介绍美国药物治疗管理的内容.结果:自2006年以来,美国药物治疗管理改变了药品的使用模式,使之演化为一个控制费用并促进医疗质量的更有效的工具.结论:美国药物治疗管理对我国医疗保险部门的工作,特别是医疗保险制度和药品安全监督工作具有借鉴意义.     

Nonlinear Pricing in Drug Benefits and Medication Use: The Case of Statin Compliance in Medicare Part D

ObjectiveTo examine how enrollees'' statin compliance responds to expected prices in Medicare Part D, which features a nonlinear price schedule due to a coverage gap.ConclusionThe presence of a coverage gap decreases statin compliance prior to the gap, suggesting that incorporating expected future prices is important to assess the full impact of cost sharing on drug compliance under nonlinear price schedules.     

A Randomized,Controlled Pragmatic Trial of Telephonic Medication Therapy Management to Reduce Hospitalization in Home Health Patients

Objective

To evaluate the effectiveness of a telephonic medication therapy management (MTM) service on reducing hospitalizations among home health patients.

Setting

Forty randomly selected, geographically diverse home health care centers in the United States.

Design

Two-stage, randomized, controlled trial with 60-day follow-up. All Medicare- insured home health care patients were eligible to participate. Twenty-eight consecutive patients within each care center were recruited and randomized to usual care or MTM intervention. The MTM intervention consisted of the following: (1) initial phone call by a pharmacy technician to verify active medications; (2) pharmacist-provided medication regimen review by telephone; and (3) follow-up pharmacist phone calls at day seven and as needed for 30 days. The primary outcome was 60-day all-cause hospitalization.

Data Collection

Data were collected from in-home nursing assessments using the OASIS-C. Multivariate logistic regression modeled the effect of the MTM intervention on the probability of hospitalization while adjusting for patients’ baseline risk of hospitalization, number of medications taken daily, and other OASIS-C data elements.

Principal Findings

A total of 895 patients (intervention n = 415, control n = 480) were block-randomized to the intervention or usual care. There was no significant difference in the 60-day probability of hospitalization between the MTM intervention and control groups (Adjusted OR: 1.26, 95 percent CI: 0.89–1.77, p = .19). For patients within the lowest baseline risk quartile (n = 232), the intervention group was three times more likely to remain out of the hospital at 60 days (Adjusted OR: 3.79, 95 percent CI: 1.35–10.57, p = .01) compared to the usual care group.

Conclusions

This MTM intervention may not be effective for all home health patients; however, for those patients with the lowest-risk profile, the MTM intervention prevented patients from being hospitalized at 60 days.