Health Insurance Status Is Related to Risk of Mortality and Hospitalization in Korean Maintenance Hemodialysis Patients: A Longitudinal Cohort Study

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Hayne Cho Park ◽  
Young-Eun Kwon ◽  
Hyung Yun Choi ◽  
Hyung Jung Oh ◽  
Tae Ik Chang ◽  
...  

<b><i>Background:</i></b> There has been an increasing incidence of hemodialysis (HD) due to old age and comorbid condition such as diabetes. In general, socioeconomic status (SES) is known as one of the most important risk factors for patient mortality and morbidity. Whether low SES is associated with poorer outcome in HD patients is controversial. This study was performed to evaluate the association of health insurance status as a proxy indicator for SES upon mortality and hospitalization in maintenance HD patients. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We used HD-quality assessment data from the year of 2015 for collecting demographic and clinical data. The subjects were classified into Medical Aid (MA) recipients (low SES) and National Health Insurance (NHI) beneficiary (high SES). We analyzed mortality and hospitalization risk based on health insurance status using Cox proportional hazard model. A total of 35,454 adult HD patients ≥18 years old who received HD treatment more than twice weekly were included in the analysis. <b><i>Results:</i></b> The ratio between MA recipient and NHI beneficiary was 76.7 versus 23.3%. The MA recipient group demonstrated younger age and lower proportion of female, diabetes, hypertension, and cerebrovascular accidents compared to the NHI beneficiary group. After adjusting for age, gender, comorbidity, and laboratory parameters, the MA recipient group showed a significantly higher mortality risk compared to the NHI beneficiary group (hazard ratio 1.073 [1.009–1.14], <i>p</i> = 0.025). The MA recipient group was also an independent risk factor for hospitalization after adjusting for age, gender, comorbidities, and laboratory parameters (hazard ratio 1.142 [1.108–1.178], <i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.001). <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Low SES as measured by health insurance status was associated with an increased risk of patient mortality and hospitalization in Korean maintenance HD patients.

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (Supplement_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Young-Ki Lee ◽  
Hayne Cho Park ◽  
Ajin Cho ◽  
Do Hyoung Kim ◽  
Juhee Kim ◽  
...  

Abstract Background and Aims The number of hemodialysis (HD) patients and their medical expenses are growing rapidly in Korea due to entry into aging society and accompanying diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. Whether low socioeconomic status (SES) affect poorer HD survival is controversial with most reports come from the USA. Therefore, this study was performed to evaluate the effect of SES upon mortality in Korean maintenance HD patients using periodic HD quality assessment data. Method The HD quality assessment has been performed periodically by Health Insurance review and Assessment Service (HIRA) since 2001. We used 4th and 5th HD quality assessment data from the year of 2013 and 2015 respectively for collecting demographic and clinical data. The 4th survey was a sample survey while the 5th survey was a complete enumeration survey. We also collected data on patient comorbidity using the diagnosis codes from the health insurance claims database. The mortality data was collected until Dec 2017. As a proxy indicator reflecting SES, we classified subjects as a Medical Aid (MA) recipients (“low” SES) or a National Health Insurance (NHI) beneficiary (“middle/high” SES). We analyzed mortality risk based on SES using Cox proportional hazard model. Results A total of 21,786 HD patients from 4th survey and 35,454 HD patients from 5th survey were included in the analysis. The ratio between NHI beneficiary and MA recipient was 76.7% versus 23.3%. Mean age of the subjects was 59.0 years old in 4th survey and 60.3 years old in 5th survey. The MA recipients were younger and showed higher proportion of male, shorter duration of HD, lower body mass index (BMI), higher systolic and diastolic blood pressures before HD compared to the NHI beneficiary. The NHI beneficiary demonstrated higher proportion of diabetes, hypertension, cerebrovascular accidents, and dementia compared to the MA recipients. Two groups did not differ in dialysis efficiency presented as single pool Kt/V. A total of 7,173 deaths occurred in 2013 participants, while 7,306 deaths occurred in 2015 participants. After adjusting for age, gender, Charlson’s comorbidity index, BMI, presence of atrial fibrillation, serum albumin, and serum creatinine, MA recipients showed significantly higher mortality risk compared to the NHI beneficiary (hazard ratio 1.162; 95% confidence interval 1.092-1.237, p&lt;0.001 in 4th survey and hazard ratio 1.078; 95% confidence interval 1.013-1.146, p=0.017 in 5th survey). Conclusion Low SES independently increased mortality risk in Korean maintenance hemodialysis patients.


SLEEP ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. A158-A158
Author(s):  
Adnan Abbasi ◽  
Sameepya Thatipelli

Abstract Introduction Undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a major public health problem. Undiagnosed OSA can result in decreased productivity due to absenteeism, increased risk of comorbidities (cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and depression), and increased motor vehicle as well as workplace accidents. Lack of health insurance coverage can lead to undiagnosed and therefore untreated OSA. The objective of this study is to evaluate health insurance status in subjects at high-risk for OSA. Methods This is a cross-sectional, population-based study of adults 18 years and older who participated in the 2017–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). A modified STOP-Bang score was used to calculate OSA risk. This score included all the variables from the standard STOP-Bang questionnaire, except neck circumference, since it was not reported in the NHANES survey. Subjects were divided into two groups: those at low-risk for OSA with a modified STOP-Bang score of ≤ 3 and those at high-risk for OSA with a modified STOP-Bang score of &gt;4. Results A total of 4,847 adult subjects were included, which represented 223,385,241 of the U.S. non-institutionalized population. Using the modified STOP-Bang score cutoff of &gt;4, 20.9% of the sample were classified as high-risk for OSA, while 79.1% were classified as low-risk for OSA. 90% of the high-risk OSA group and 85.1% of the low-risk OSA group reported having health insurance. Sociodemographic data will also be analyzed and included. Conclusion Approximately 10% of subjects who are at high-risk for OSA reported not having health insurance. This represents over 4.6 million Americans in the non-institutionalized population. Health insurance can improve access to health care. Timely diagnosis and treatment of OSA not only can reduce morbidity and mortality, but can also reduce health care costs. Support (if any) CDC for NHANES Data.


2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492199917
Author(s):  
Lindsey A. Jones ◽  
Katherine C. Brewer ◽  
Leslie R. Carnahan ◽  
Jennifer A. Parsons ◽  
Blase N. Polite ◽  
...  

Objective For colon cancer patients, one goal of health insurance is to improve access to screening that leads to early detection, early-stage diagnosis, and polyp removal, all of which results in easier treatment and better outcomes. We examined associations among health insurance status, mode of detection (screen detection vs symptomatic presentation), and stage at diagnosis (early vs late) in a diverse sample of patients recently diagnosed with colon cancer from the Chicago metropolitan area. Methods Data came from the Colon Cancer Patterns of Care in Chicago study of racial and socioeconomic disparities in colon cancer screening, diagnosis, and care. We collected data from the medical records of non-Hispanic Black and non-Hispanic White patients aged ≥50 and diagnosed with colon cancer from October 2010 through January 2014 (N = 348). We used logistic regression with marginal standardization to model associations between health insurance status and study outcomes. Results After adjusting for age, race, sex, and socioeconomic status, being continuously insured 5 years before diagnosis and through diagnosis was associated with a 20 (95% CI, 8-33) percentage-point increase in prevalence of screen detection. Screen detection in turn was associated with a 15 (95% CI, 3-27) percentage-point increase in early-stage diagnosis; however, nearly half (47%; n = 54) of the 114 screen-detected patients were still diagnosed at late stage (stage 3 or 4). Health insurance status was not associated with earlier stage at diagnosis. Conclusions For health insurance to effectively shift stage at diagnosis, stronger associations are needed between health insurance and screening-related detection; between screening-related detection and early stage at diagnosis; or both. Findings also highlight the need to better understand factors contributing to late-stage colon cancer diagnosis despite screen detection.


Sci ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 25
Author(s):  
Jesse Patrick ◽  
Philip Q. Yang

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is at the crossroads. It is important to evaluate the effectiveness of the ACA in order to make rational decisions about the ongoing healthcare reform, but existing research into its effect on health insurance status in the United States is insufficient and descriptive. Using data from the National Health Interview Surveys from 2009 to 2015, this study examines changes in health insurance status and its determinants before the ACA in 2009, during its partial implementation in 2010–2013, and after its full implementation in 2014 and 2015. The results of trend analysis indicate a significant increase in national health insurance rate from 82.2% in 2009 to 89.4% in 2015. Logistic regression analyses confirm the similar impact of age, gender, race, marital status, nativity, citizenship, education, and poverty on health insurance status before and after the ACA. Despite similar effects across years, controlling for other variables, youth aged 26 or below, the foreign-born, Asians, and other races had a greater probability of gaining health insurance after the ACA than before the ACA; however, the odds of obtaining health insurance for Hispanics and the impoverished rose slightly during the partial implementation of the ACA, but somewhat declined after the full implementation of the ACA starting in 2014. These findings should be taken into account by the U.S. Government in deciding the fate of the ACA.


Author(s):  
Gaon-Sorae Wang ◽  
Kyoung-Min You ◽  
You-Hwan Jo ◽  
Hui-Jai Lee ◽  
Jong-Hwan Shin ◽  
...  

(1) Background: Sepsis is a life-threatening disease, and various demographic and socioeconomic factors affect outcomes in sepsis. However, little is known regarding the potential association between health insurance status and outcomes of sepsis in Korea. We evaluated the association of health insurance and clinical outcomes in patients with sepsis. (2) Methods: Prospective cohort data of adult patients with sepsis and septic shock from March 2016 to December 2018 in three hospitals were retrospectively analyzed. We categorized patients into two groups according to their health insurance status: National Health Insurance (NHI) and Medical Aid (MA). The primary end point was in-hospital mortality. The multivariate logistic regression model and propensity score matching were used. (3) Results: Of a total of 2526 eligible patients, 2329 (92.2%) were covered by NHI, and 197 (7.8%) were covered by MA. The MA group had fewer males, more chronic kidney disease, more multiple sources of infection, and more patients with initial lactate > 2 mmol/L. In-hospital, 28-day, and 90-day mortality were not significantly different between the two groups and in-hospital mortality was not different in the subgroup analysis. Furthermore, health insurance status was not independently associated with in-hospital mortality in multivariate analysis and was not associated with survival outcomes in the propensity score-matched cohort. (4) Conclusion: Our propensity score-matched cohort analysis demonstrated that there was no significant difference in in-hospital mortality by health insurance status in patients with sepsis.


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