title: The association of marital status and hospice use in the USA.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Married individuals are more likely to use hospice than unmarried individuals. We examine this association and how it is influenced by gender.
  
  
  METHODS
  Medicare beneficiaries dying of cancer were studied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Currently married (OR 1.36 95% C.I. 1.28-1.45) or ever married (OR 1.23 95% C.I. 1.16-1.31) subjects were more likely to use hospice than never married subjects. A significant interaction between marital status and gender (P < .001) was observed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Subjects likely to enroll in hospice are subjects likely to have greater supportive relationships.
authors.affiliation: Sealy Center on Aging, 301 University Boulevard, Galveston, TX 77555-0460, USA. nalackan@utmb.edu
authors.forename: Nuha A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Lackan
authors.forename: Glenn V
authors.initials: GV
authors.lastname: Ostir
authors.forename: Yong-Fang
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Jean L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Freeman
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D017051:Hospice Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000451:nursing; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014481:United States