Research Roundup: Hospital Antitrust Concerns; ACA Narrowed Racial Disparities in Health Care
Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.
Health Affairs:
Corporate Investors Increased Common Ownership In Hospitals And The Postacute Care And Hospice Sectors
The sharing of investors across firms is a new antitrust focus because of its potential negative effects on competition. ... [Researchers] used data from the
Provider Enrollment, Chain, and Ownership System of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services ... the percentage of acute care hospitals having common investor ties to the postacute or hospice sectors increased from 24.6 percent in 2005 to 48.9 percent in 2015. (Fowler et al., 9/1)
Commonwealth Fund:
Affordable Care Act Narrowed Gaps In Access To Health Care Between Whites, And Blacks And Hispanics
To assess the effect of the ACA’s major coverage expansions on disparities in access to care among adults, [researchers conducted an analysis] of nationally representative data from the American Community Survey and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. After the implementation of the ACA’s coverage expansions, minority populations experienced historic gains in their ability to access health care when needed. (Riley, Radley and McCarthy, 8/24)
Pediatrics:
Characteristics Of Children Enrolled In Medicaid With High-Frequency Emergency Department Use
Among Medicaid-insured children with high-frequency ED use in 1 year, [researchers] sought to describe the characteristics of children who sustain high-frequency ED use over the following 2 years. ... One in 6 Medicaid-insured children with high ED use in a single year experienced sustained high levels of ED use over the next 2 years. Adolescents and individuals with multiple chronic conditions were most likely to have sustained high rates of ED use. Targeted interventions may be indicated to help reduce ED use among children at high risk. (Peltz et al., 9/1)
Annals of Internal Medicine:
Proposed U.S. Funding Cuts Threaten Progress On Antimicrobial Resistance
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that at least 2 million persons in the United States acquire antibiotic-resistant infections each year, resulting in at least 23 000 deaths. ... In the past 2 years, national and global leaders have united against this threat. ... However, budget cuts of a historic magnitude proposed by the Trump administration now threaten to undo this progress. (Boucher, Murray and Powderly, 9/5)
