Financial risk and hospital cost for elderly patients. Age- and non-age-stratified medical diagnosis related groups.
The purpose of this study was to analyze hospital resource consumption for Medicare patients in non-age- and age-stratified medical diagnosis related groups (DRGs). This study of patients in 74 non-age-stratified DRGs (N = 3643) and 113 age-stratified DRGs (N = 2898) demonstrated that older medical patients (usually greater than or equal to 75 to 80 years of age) had (on average) higher total hospital costs, a longer hospital length of stay, more diagnoses per patient, a greater percentage of outliers, and a higher mortality compared with younger patients in these same DRGs. These findings raise the question of the equity of DRG payment vis-à-vis older Medicare patients in both non-age- and age-stratified medical DRGs. Financial disincentives to treat older medical patients may limit both their access and quality of care in the future.
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D003953:Diagnosis-Related Groups / Q000191:economics*; D005376:Financial Management; D005377:Financial Management, Hospital; D006746:Hospital Bed Capacity, 500 and over; D006761:Hospitals / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006786:Hospitals, Urban / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000191:economics; D006278:Medicare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City; D012306:Risk