A nationwide analysis of readmission rates after colorectal cancer surgery in the US in the Era of the Affordable Care Act.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: The Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program (HRRP), which was instituted in 2012, may have affected readmission rates for non-target conditions, including colorectal cancer (CRC). We aimed to analyze the nationwide all-cause 30-day readmission rate following CRC surgery in a US nationwide database. METHODS: We queried the 2010-2015 Nationwide Readmissions Database to estimate readmission rates. All results were weighted for national estimates. RESULTS: Among 616,348 index cases, the overall 2010-2015 30-day readmission rate was 14.7% (95% confidence interval, 14.5%-14.9% [n = 90,555]), with a decreasing trend from 15.5% in 2010 and 2011 to 13.5% in 2015 (p-trend<0.001). Rectal resection, longer length of stay, non-invasive cancer, surgery at a metropolitan teaching hospital, non-routine discharge, elective admission, and higher Elixhauser comorbidity score were associated with subsequent readmission. CONCLUSIONS: In the US, 30-day readmission rates after CRC surgery showed a decreasing trend during 2010-2015, which could represent a spillover effect of the HRRP.

Recent Trends and the Impact of the Affordable Care Act on Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalizations for Gastrointestinal, Pancreatic, and Liver Diseases.

BACKGROUND: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) with Medicaid expansion implemented in 2014, extended health insurance to >20-million previously uninsured individuals. However, it is unclear whether enhanced primary care access with Medicaid expansion decreased emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalizations for gastrointestinal (GI)/pancreatic/liver diseases. METHODS: We evaluated trends in GI/pancreatic/liver diagnosis-specific ED/hospital utilization over a 5-year period leading up to Medicaid expansion and a year following expansion, in California (a state that implemented Medicaid expansion) and compare these with Florida (a state that did not). RESULTS: From 2009 to 2013, GI/pancreatic/liver disease ED visits increased by 15.0% in California and 20.2% in Florida and hospitalizations for these conditions decreased by 2.6% in California and increased by 7.9% in Florida. Following Medicaid expansion, a shift from self-pay/uninsured to Medicaid insurance was seen California; in addition, a new decrease in ED visits for nausea/vomiting and GI infections, was evident, without associated change in overall ED/hospital utilization trends. Total hospitalization charges for abdominal pain, nausea/vomiting, constipation, and GI infection diagnoses decreased in California following Medicaid expansion, but increased over the same time-period in Florida. CONCLUSIONS: We observed a striking payer shift for GI/pancreatic/liver disease ED visits/hospitalizations after Medicaid expansion in California, indicating a shift in the reimbursement burden in self-pay/uninsured patients, from patients and hospitals to the government. ED visits and hospitalization charges decreased for some primary care-treatable GI diagnoses in California, but not for Florida, suggesting a trend toward lower cost of gastroenterology care, perhaps because of decreased hospital utilization for conditions amenable to outpatient management.

Affordable Care Act and healthcare delivery: A comparison of California and Florida hospitals and emergency departments.

IMPORTANCE: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has expanded access to health insurance for millions of Americans, but the impact of Medicaid expansion on healthcare delivery and utilization remains uncertain. OBJECTIVE: To determine the early impact of the Medicaid expansion component of ACA on hospital and ED utilization in California, a state that implemented the Medicaid expansion component of ACA and Florida, a state that did not. DESIGN: Analyze all ED encounters and hospitalizations in California and Florida from 2009 to 2014 and evaluate trends by payer and diagnostic category. Data were collected from State Inpatient Databases, State Emergency Department Databases and the California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development. SETTING: Hospital and ED encounters. PARTICIPANTS: Population-based study of California and Florida state residents. EXPOSURE: Implementation of Medicaid expansion component of ACA in California in 2014. MAIN OUTCOMES OR MEASURES: Changes in ED visits and hospitalizations by payer, percentage of patients hospitalized after an ED encounter, top diagnostic categories for ED and hospital encounters. RESULTS: In California, Medicaid ED visits increased 33% after Medicaid expansion implementation and self-pay visits decreased by 25% compared with a 5.7% increase in the rate of Medicaid patient ED visits and a 5.1% decrease in rate of self-pay patient visits in Florida. In addition, California experienced a 15.4% increase in Medicaid inpatient stays and a 25% decrease in self pay stays. Trends in the percentage of patients admitted to the hospital from the ED were notable; a 5.4% decrease in hospital admissions originating from the ED in California, and a 2.1% decrease in Florida from 2013 to 2014. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: We observed a significant shift in payer for ED visits and hospitalizations after Medicaid expansion in California without a significant change in top diagnoses or overall rate of these ED visits and hospitalizations. There appears to be a shift in reimbursement burden from patients and hospitals to the government without a dramatic shift in patterns of ED or hospital utilization.