Venue: The Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, 1 Towerview Drive, Durham, NC 27708-0120

 

Presentation

Trends in Racial Disparities among the Elderly for Selected Procedures

Authors: Jayasree Basu (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality); Lee R. Mobley (RTI International)

Presenter: Jayasree Basu (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)

Discussant: Zijun Wang (Texas A&M University)

Session: Racial Disparities

Room: Geneen Auditorium

When: Tuesday 8:30 a.m. - 10 a.m.

We examine trends in racial or ethnic disparities in the utilization of three costly, referral-sensitive procedures among the elderly - bypass surgery (CABG), coronary angioplasty (PTCA), and Hip/Joint replacement- over 1997-2001. Using a multivariate framework, we undertake a simultaneous examination of the relationships between three types of factors -- patient, local area context, and health systems -- on these admission types, after comparing them to a control group of marker admissions. This period spans the implementation of the Balanced Budget Act and a major initiative by Department of Health and Human Services to reduce disparities, so one might expect change in observed disparities. Findings suggest increasing disparities for African Americans relative to whites in their lower utilization of CABG and PTCA over time, and increasing disparities in the utilization of hip/joint replacement among 'other' races' relative to whites. We find that racial or ethnic disparities in use of referral-sensitive procedures did not narrow over 1997-2001.