May 2020
Pandemic to Bring Painful Choices for States, Policy Makers: A Q&A With Larry Levitt
May 15th 2020To mark the 25th anniversary of the journal, each issue in 2020 will include an interview with a healthcare thought leader. For the May issue, we turned to Larry Levitt, MPP, executive vice president for health policy for the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Accountable Care Organizations Are Increasingly Led by Physician Groups Rather Than Hospital Systems
May 14th 2020Since 2015, the majority of new accountable care organizations (ACOs) have been led by physician groups rather than hospital systems. This shift requires policies that address the characteristic strengths and weaknesses of physician-led ACOs.
The Association of Health Literacy Domains With Hospitalizations and Mortality
Despite previous research evidence, this study did not reveal an overall association of health literacy, numeracy, and graph literacy with all-cause hospitalizations or mortality.
Medical Home Effects on Enrollees With Mental and Physical Illness
Medical home enrollment had mixed effects on acute care use and a large effect on outpatient care use. Effects on expenditures varied by mental illness.
Analyzing Admission Rates for Multiple Ambulatory Care–Sensitive Conditions
Ambulatory care–sensitive conditions can be systematically assessed in a large electronic medical database to describe admission rates by year, catchment area, and hospital affiliation.
Economic Burden of Osteoporotic Fractures in US Managed Care Enrollees
Osteoporotic fractures are associated with a significant economic burden, including costs of rehabilitation services and a high total all-cause cost of care.
COPD Exacerbation Costs in the IMPACT Study: A Within-Trial Analysis
Treatment with fluticasone furoate/umeclidinium/vilanterol (FF/UMEC/VI) compared with FF/VI or UMEC/VI reduced exacerbation-related costs associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the US healthcare system.
Six Sigma Approach to Reduce Door-to-Balloon Time for Patients With STEMI
Specific measures using a Six Sigma approach led to sustained reduction of door-to-balloon times among patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) in a community setting.
Expanding Coverage for Essential Care During COVID-19
April 6th 2020The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic will exacerbate the financial situations of the millions of Americans who struggle to afford their medical care, but policy solutions are available to quickly mitigate this problem.
