The Medicare system is spending “significantly” more money on post-acute care for patients when compared to those who have commercial insurance, despite it not being clinically more beneficial, a new study has found.
University of Michigan researchers discovered that despite the difference in spending there were no significant differences in hospital readmission rates between the groups.
“When we looked at just the length of stay of SNFs (skilled nursing facilities) while comparing patients, (we found) longer average length of stay for Medicare patients,” Scott Regenbogen, an associate professor of surgery at the University of Michigan, told McKnight’s. “There may be clinically unwarranted longer lengths of stay among Medicare beneficiaries.”
Researchers used data from more than 25,000 patients throughout the state for the study. They then used a regression discontinuity design to compare post-acute care use and costs between seniors in their 60s who have traditional Medicare coverage or private insurance. They also focused on post-acute care received at skilled nursing facilities, at home and at inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation facilities.
Based on the findings, Regenbogen suggested post-acute care providers may want to be “really judicious with the volume of services they provide and conclusive of which of the post-acute care services are translating to better post-hospital outcomes.”
The study was published in the September issue of Health Affairs and funded by the National Institute on Aging.
