State estimates of Medicaid expenditures attributable to cigarette smoking, fiscal year 1993.
OBJECTIVE
To develop estimates of state Medicaid expenditures attributable to smoking for fiscal year 1993.


METHODS
The smoking-attributable fractions (SAFs) of state Medicaid expenditures were estimated using a national model that describes the relationship between smoking and medical expenditures, controlling for a variety of sociodemographic, economic, and behavioral factors.


RESULTS
In fiscal year 1993, the SAF for all states (all types of expenditures) was 14.4%, with a range from 8.6% in Washington DC to 19.2% in Nevada. On average, SAFs ranged from a low of 7.9% for home health services expenditures to 21.7% for hospital expenditures. An estimated total of $12.9 billion of fiscal year 1993 Medicaid expenditures was attributable to smoking. The relative error of this estimate was 40.3%.


CONCLUSIONS
Cigarette smoking accounts for a substantial portion of annual state Medicaid expenditures, with considerable variation among states. The range in expenditures among the states is due to differences in smoking prevalence, health status, other socioeconomic variables used in the model, and the level and scope of the Medicaid program.
School of Social Welfare, Univ. of California, Berkeley 94720-7400, USA.
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D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D005260:Female; D005102:Health Expenditures; D006304:Health Status; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000191:economics; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008484:Medicaid / Q000191:economics*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014481:United States