Rethinking the Digital Divide: Using an Internet Survey in a Flint Water Crisis Medicaid Population.

This project examined the preferred mode of response (internet, phone, mail) to a health services survey. Data were collected via survey responses from a subsample of Flint Water Crisis Medicaid Expansion Waiver enrollees (N=2,584). Analyses were stratified by age, residency, race, and income. Chi-square tests were used to detect categorical differences. The majority of participants responded by internet (55.5%), followed by mail (39.4%), and phone (5.2%). Of those responding by internet, 75% used smartphones for connectivity. Black and White respondents used the internet at a greater rate than Hispanic respondents (p<.01). Respondents at 200% federal poverty level (FPL) or higher used the internet mode at greater rates than those below 200% FPL (p<.01). Our findings suggest greater internet use in a vulnerable population than expected, but the digital divide persists. In the advent of COVID-19, this finding can inform future health programming using digital communication and telehealth.

New Composite Measure for ADL Limitations: Application to Predicting Nursing Home Placement for Michigan MI Choice Clients.

Functional status measured by activities of daily living (ADL) may be used to predict nursing home placement. Scoring of ADL measures is summarized for convenience, yet this is accompanied by losing detail regarding deficits. We sought to determine whether a revised composite measure tailored to Michigan Medicaid beneficiaries would better identify those at risk for nursing home admission. We compared composite ADL measures created by exploratory factor analysis and additive modeling to Medicaid Enrollment, MI Choice Waiver program, and Nursing Facility claims data from 2013 to 2017. There were moderate to high levels of correlation between ADLs (.4-.82). Exploratory factor analysis extracted two factors, corresponding to domains of mobility or self-care tasks. Application of the self-care-based ADL limitations composite measure provided prediction power equivalent to an additive measure incorporating all ADL limitations for nursing home admission. This approach demonstrated improved interpretability with the need for just five measures.