The health status of elderly veteran enrollees in the Veterans Health Administration.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the health status of elderly veteran enrollees, stratified by age group, and compare with nonveteran populations.


METHODS
Cross-sectional study.


METHODS
Outpatient.


METHODS
A total of 1,406,049 veteran enrollees were surveyed, and 887,775 returned the questionnaire (63.1%). Of these, 663,729 (74%) were aged 65 and older.


METHODS
Patient demographics, comorbid conditions, and health status, which was assessed using the Veterans 36-item short form (SF-36), a reliable and valid measure of health-related quality of life (HRQoL).


RESULTS
Elderly veteran enrollees are a group with poor health status across all scales of the Veterans SF-36. Significant decline in HRQoL was found in patients grouped by increasing age (65-74, 75-84, and > or =85). Of the Veterans SF-36 scales, the role physical and role emotional scales and physical functioning presented the largest decrements by age group. The elderly veteran enrollees had poorer health status than older people enrolled in Medicare managed care, ranging from 0.5 to 1 standard deviations worse.


CONCLUSIONS
Elderly veteran enrollees have substantial disease burden, as reflected by major impairments across multiple dimensions of HRQoL. These findings bear important implications for use of services, suggesting that the Veterans Health Administration will require considerable resources to provide care for its aging population.
Center for Health Quality, Outcomes, and Economic Research, Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center, Bedford, Massachusetts, USA. selim.alfredo_j@boston.med.va.gov
Alfredo J
AJ
Selim
Dan R
DR
Berlowitz
Graeme
G
Fincke
Zhongxiao
Z
Cong
William
W
Rogers
Samuel C
SC
Haffer
Xinhua S
XS
Ren
Austin
A
Lee
Shirley X
SX
Qian
Donald R
DR
Miller
Avron
A
Spiro
Bernardo J
BJ
Selim
Lewis E
LE
Kazis
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011788:Quality of Life; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs; D014728:Veterans