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ERIC Number: EJ840501
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2009-Jun
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0016-9013
EISSN: N/A
Urban-Rural Differences in the Effect of a Medicare Health Promotion and Disease Self-Management Program on Physical Function and Health Care Expenditures
Meng, Hongdao; Wamsley, Brenda; Liebel, Diane; Dixon, Denise; Eggert, Gerald; Van Nostrand, Joan
Gerontologist, v49 n3 p407-417 Jun 2009
Purpose: To evaluate the impact of a multicomponent health promotion and disease self-management intervention on physical function and health care expenditures among Medicare beneficiaries. To determine if these outcomes vary by urban or rural residence. Design and Methods: We analyzed data from a 22-month randomized controlled trial of a health promotion/disease self-management program that included 766 elderly Medicare beneficiaries from western New York, West Virginia, and Ohio. Physical function was measured by changes in self-reported dependencies in activities of daily living over the study period. Total health care expenditures were measured by aggregating expenditures from major sources (acute, postacute, and long-term care). We used ordinary least squares models to examine the effects of the intervention on both physical function and cost outcomes during the 22-month period. Results: The results indicated that the intervention reduced physical functional decline by 54% (p = 0.03) in the study sample. Stratified analyses showed that the intervention effect was much stronger in the rural sample. Mean total health care expenditures were 11% ($3,100, p = 0.30) lower in the intervention group. The effects of the intervention on average health care expenditures were similar among urban and rural participants. Implications: The intervention offered a promising strategy for reducing decline in physical function and potentially lowering total health care expenditures for high-risk Medicare beneficiaries, especially for those in rural areas. Future studies need to investigate whether the findings can be replicated in other types of rural areas through a refined intervention and better targeting of the study population.
Oxford University Press. Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: +44-1865-353907; Fax: +44-1865-353485; e-mail: jnls.cust.serv@oxfordjournals.org; Web site: http://gerontologist.oxfordjournals.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York; Ohio; West Virginia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A