Health services research
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Health services research · Jun 2010
Relationship between clinical conditions and use of Veterans Affairs health care among Medicare-enrolled veterans.
To determine how reliance on Veterans Affairs (VA) for medical care among veterans enrolled in Medicare is affected by medical conditions, access, and patient characteristics. ⋯ Many dually enrolled Veterans use both Medicare and VA health care. Age, accessibility, and priority level for VA services have a clear relationship with VA reliance. Because dual use is common, coordination of care among health care settings for such patients should be a policy priority.
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Health services research · Jun 2010
Comparative StudyReexploring differences among for-profit and nonprofit dialysis providers.
To determine whether profit status is associated with differences in hospital days per patient, an outcome that may also be influenced by provider financial goals. ⋯ Hospital days per patient-year were statistically and clinically significantly lower among nonprofit dialysis providers. These findings suggest that the indirect incentives in Medicare's current payment system may provide insufficient incentive for for-profit providers to achieve optimal patient outcomes.