Checkup on Health Insurance Choices
Improving Health Care for Rural Populations
Medical Expenditure Survey Panel (MEPS)
Most Frequent Diagnoses and Procedures for DRGs, by Insurance Status
Theory and Reality of Value-Based Purchasing: Lessons from the Pioneers
Addressing the Needs of the Uninsured in a Challenging Economic Environment
Web-Assisted Teleconference, March 12-14, 2002
Individual Health Insurance: Are You Ready for a Change?
Web-Assisted Teleconference, April 24, 2002
Research Activities, May 2004:
Significant increases in drug copayments may reduce patients' use of needed medications
Referrals for physical therapy for musculoskeletal conditions vary and may indicate problems with access to care
Researchers find New York SCHIP improves health care access, continuity, and quality
Young and healthy individuals fare better than moderately sick individuals with consumer-directed health benefits
Research Activities, April 2004:
Researchers examine racial and ethnic disparities in emergency care
Health plan use of gatekeepers may improve use of recommended cancer screening
State reforms in the 1990s to guarantee health insurance for employees of small firms had little effect on offer rates
Research Activities, March 2004:
Many major teaching hospitals might not be able to offer adequate access to specialty care for uninsured patients
Researchers find SCHIP and Medicaid networks compete for physicians in some markets
Research Activities, January 2004:
Recent HCSUS studies focus on HIV infection in older individuals and women, use of complementary and alternative therapies, and insurance status
Changing health insurance plans might adversely affect a persons' care as well as increase care costs during the first year
Research Activities, December 2003:
Determinants of children's access to care in rural North Carolina are similar to those of urban and suburban children
Expanding the number of poor children eligible for Medicaid has increased access to care, but gaps remain
CHIRI™ studies children enrolled in the State Children's Health Insurance Program
Research Activities, November 2003:
Lack of insurance and living in an area with greater managed care activity reduce access to care
Individuals who are uninsured for 6 months or more are less likely to use preventive care services
Racial differences exist in survival following cardiac arrest, specialty treatment for scleroderma, and access to care
Research Activities, October 2003:
Patient and practice socioeconomic status are independently associated with care among privately insured patients
Use of time in outpatient residency training does not reflect the actual community practice of family physicians
An enhanced MEPS enables national studies of health care coverage, access, costs, and health status of U.S. households
Research Activities, September 2003:
Heavy users of the ER are usually socioeconomically disadvantaged and have significant health problems
Factors that impede access to care and patient satisfaction are explored in three recent studies
State and Federal health care financial policies can affect patient treatment and outcomes
Research Activities, July 2003:
More assertive outreach programs may be needed to link homeless women to case managers and a broader range of services
Expanding Medicare to include a drug benefit would reduce the financial burden on elders but might not greatly increase drug access
Financial consequences for doctor referrals to specialists affect patient satisfaction but not outcomes
Declining payments for emergency care compromise the ability of EDs to provide emergency care to the uninsured
Research Activities, June 2003:
Factors beyond insurance coverage affect racial/ethnic disparities in health care
Researchers examine access to care and satisfaction among SSI enrollees in Tennessee's Medicaid program
Research Activities, May 2003:
Patient characteristics and insurance coverage affect their ratings of managed behavioral health care plans
Most individuals hospitalized for gunshot wounds are young and poor, and more than one-fourth have no insurance
Research Activities, April 2003:
Individuals who have lapses in insurance coverage are less likely to use preventive services than those with continuous coverage
Research Activities, March 2003:
States vary widely in how they regulate private health insurers and managed care organizations
Research Activities, February 2003:
New report provides an overview of children's insurance coverage, health care use and expenditures, and quality of care
Researchers examine access to care and quality for Medicaid MCO enrollees who have disabilities
Research Activities, January 2003:
Being uninsured for just 2 years adversely affects the health of adults in late middle age
Workplace factors, length of U.S. residence, and language barriers contribute to lack of insurance among Hispanics
Despite greater poverty, less education, and less access to care, Hispanics tend to have similar or better health than whites
Medicare enrollees who have disabilities are most dissatisfied with not being able to get to a doctor and the high cost of care
Adding CAHPS® data to standard enrollment materials does not affect health plan choice among new Medicaid enrollees
Research Activities, November 2002:
State outreach efforts are needed to enroll more non-English-speaking families in Medicaid programs
Research Activities, October 2002:
Some State Medicaid managed care programs have policies that could restrict access to needed medications
Health insurance premiums rose more than 30 percent between 1996 and 2000
Research Activities, August 2002:
Providing homeless women with health insurance and a regular source of care may greatly improve their access to care
Researchers examine use of highly active HIV medications and their effects on costs and access to care
Research Activities, July 2002:
Experience in Florida SCHIP may provide lessons for other States' reenrollment requirements
Researchers examine poor children's access to public insurance coverage and health care
People vary in what they look for when choosing a health plan
Patients suffering from depression often overestimate their insurance coverage for mental health services
Research Activities, June 2002:
Expanding income eligibility for State Children's Health Insurance Programs would not burden the program
Shifting to Medicaid managed care in New Mexico increased barriers for rural residents and burdened safety-net providers
Accreditation of managed care health plans does not necessarily ensure high quality care or higher enrollment rates
Research Activities, May 2002:
Distinct communication modes used by deaf adults may be associated with health care use and health status
Making pneumonia and influenza vaccinations more convenient may increase immunizations among elderly and at-risk people
Employees use comparison data on health plans to avoid poorly rated plans and choose plans with lower out-of-pocket costs
Researchers examine the impact of health plan report cards on employee plan knowledge and choice
Subsidies of out-of-pocket health insurance premiums must be large to affect employee enrollment decisions
Research Activities, April 2002:
Researchers examine the impact of prescription medicine coverage and copayments on medication use
Employers may be able to lower their costs for health insurance by offering more plans and making employees more price sensitive
Employees who are given health plan quality information are more likely to switch to high-quality plans
Consumers perceive quality differences across health systems and factor these differences into health plan choices
Employee characteristics affect the generosity of health plans and the likelihood of employers offering a choice of plans
Elderly people find new Medicare information materials useful in navigating the maze of health plan choices
Conference attendees examine employers' use of risk adjustment to contend with adverse selection from health plans
Research Activities, March 2002:
Insurance type influences medication costs and the choice of brand-name or generic drugs
Researchers examine why some patients with chronic kidney disease are referred late to a nephrologist
Asian Americans are less satisfied with the quality of primary care they receive than any other racial/ethnic group
Expanding State Children's Health Insurance Programs to higher income children would not "crowd out" private insurance
Despite health care system changes during the early 1990s, use of care and financial burden for the uninsured changed very little
Research Activities, February 2002:
Medicaid program expansions to cover otherwise uninsured poor children appear to be relatively inexpensive
Research Activities, December 2001:
Even patients with a doctor in the family face challenges in receiving optimal medical care
Late middle-aged adults are more likely to decline in overall health when they have no health insurance
Research Activities, November 2001:
Studies show racial disparities in receipt of flu shots, cardiovascular surgery, and care preferences
Low education and income are related to poor health, chronic illness, and depression among Medicare-insured older women
Disabled women who have difficulty walking are less likely than other women to receive Pap smears and mammograms
Variations in Asthma prevalence rates depend at least in part on diagnostic practices among different population groups
HCSUS studies examine mental health, drug abuse, insurance effects, and quality of life among people with HIV
Research Activities, September 2001:
Nonprofit women's health centers better serve poor and vulnerable women than for-profit centers
Research Activities, August 2001:
Healthy, working-age, privately insured consumers currently may be over-insuring for medical care
Research Activities, July 2001:
Although a surprisingly large number of homeless people work, most can't live on their earnings
Research Activities, May 2001:
Proposed Medicare drug benefit plans with high cost-sharing and no catastrophic coverage may not help the sickest patients
Access to members' comparative ratings of health plans could affect consumer's choices of health plans
Research Activities, April 2001:
Researchers explore children's access to and use of health care services
Health plan choice is associated with increased enrollment in employer-based coverage
Health insurance enrollment is declining in industries with large minority workforces
Equalizing coverage for mental health and physical health would substantially reduce consumers' share of mental health costs
Major inequalities in health exist within Pakistan and between Pakistan and the United States
Research Activities, March 2001:
Community-based programs offer a way to reach disadvantaged women and encourage them to have mammograms
Despite intensified efforts to prevent cardiovascular disease, disparities continue for some groups and regions
Research Activities, February 2001:
Health insurance and access to primary care affect hospitalization of children outside their area of residence
Access to health care in the mid-1990s varied according to the patient's income level
Direct patient access to specialists does not lead to more specialty visits in plans with modest cost-sharing arrangements
Research Activities, January 2001:
People with Medicaid coverage and a usual source of care are less likely than others to delay care after HIV diagnosis
Research Activities, December 2000:
Racial/ethnic disparities in health care access and use are not explained by health insurance and income
Insurance status influences access to antihypertensive drug therapy, while personal factors influence patterns of use
Enhanced access to care for rural and disadvantaged patients may be a by-product of the high cost of a medical education
Decentralization of California's mental health system enhanced access to care for the most severely ill patients
Recommendations from family and friends carry the most weight in choosing a physician, hospital, or health plan
Research Activities, November 2000:
Lack of English ability creates a substantial barrier to Hispanic children's access to health care
Insurance coverage does not guarantee access to high-quality health care services
State primary care scholarship programs play a major role in the nation's health care safety net
Gap in health insurance coverage for Hispanic men widened between 1987 and 1996
Researchers examine physicians' perceptions of health plan incentives to limit services
Inadequate hospital care and illness severity prompt rural patients to seek care at hospitals outside their areas
Research Activities, October 2000:
Availability of free vaccines affects clinicians' decisions about referring uninsured children to public clinics
Research Activities, September 2000:
Policies that provide postretirement health benefits to the near-elderly may encourage some workers to retire early
Washington State employees find CAHPS® health plan assessments to be easy to understand and useful
All health care providers will soon be affected by federally mandated standardization of health insurance billing
Research Activities, August 2000:
Expanded Medicaid and higher reimbursement rates only marginally improve access to dental services for poor children
Lack of insurance may not be the only barrier to timely prenatal care for low-income women
Invasive treatments for heart attack may be underused in patients who do not have insurance
Access to medical care is worse for Asians and Pacific Islanders than for whites and other ethnic groups
Research Activities, July 2000:
Higher risk of out-of-pocket health care expenses is associated with an increased risk of premature death among the elderly
Researchers examine factors influencing health insurers' coverage of new genetic technologies
Research Activities, June 2000:
Payer status appears to have a strong influence on hospital management of patients with heart attack
Research Activities, May 2000:
Language
difficulties are as much of a barrier to health care for some Latinos as being
uninsured
Letting employees
keep their doctors and low cost drive small business' choice of health
plans
Research Activities, April 2000:
Homeless people are
willing to obtain health care if they believe it is important
Research Activities, February 2000:
Programs to help
the poor purchase nongroup health insurance may not have the intended
effect
Research Activities, January 2000:
Access to second
medical opinions is determined in part by sociocultural factors and type of
insurance