OPTN/SRTR 2021 Annual Data Report: Lung.

The number of lung transplants has continued to decline since 2020, a period that coincides with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lung allocation policy continues to undergo considerable change in preparation for adoption of the Composite Allocation Score system in 2023, beginning with multiple adaptations to the calculation of the Lung Allocation Score that occurred in 2021. The number of candidates added to the waiting list increased after a decline in 2020, while waitlist mortality has increased slightly with a decreased number of transplants. Time to transplant continues to improve, with 38.0% of candidates waiting fewer than 90 days for a transplant. Posttransplant survival remains stable, with 85.3% of transplant recipients surviving to 1 year; 67%, to 3 years; and 54.3%, to 5 years.

A Qualitative Analysis of State Medicaid Coverage Benefits for Allogeneic Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation (alloHCT) for Patients with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD).

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common inherited hemoglobin disorder, affecting approximately 100,000 people in the United States. Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT), also known as bone marrow transplant (BMT), is currently the only established curative option for SCD. However, alloHCT is an optional benefit under Medicaid. This study of alloHCT coverage for patients with SCD aims to understand the scope of state Medicaid coverage benefits and BMT financial coordinators' experience working with their state Medicaid programs. States estimated to have more than 50 newborns diagnosed with SCD in 2016 and at least one active BMT Clinical Trials Network (1503 [STRIDE 2], NCT02766465) transplant center (TC) were eligible to participate in this study. Qualitative, semi-structured interviews 30 to 60 minutes in length were conducted with BMT financial coordinators via telephone between May and October 2019. A total of 10 BMT financial coordinators from 10 TCs representing eight states (Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia) participated in the semi-structured interviews. Coordinators in all of the included states reported that alloHCT in children with SCD with a human leukocyte antigen-matched sibling donor was covered by their state Medicaid programs. However, only two states (Florida and Texas) had legislative policies mandating coverage of routine medical costs for patients in clinical trials. TCs in two states (Illinois and Pennsylvania) reported accepting out-of-state Medicaid insurance, but only one state (Michigan) covered both travel and lodging for the patient and one caregiver. Four themes emerged when coordinators were asked about their perspectives and experiences working with their corresponding state Medicaid programs: (1) state Medicaid eligibility criteria based on disability were perceived as being restrictive, and Medicaid reimbursement rates were reported to be low; (2) Medicaid fee-for-service plans were perceived as being more comprehensive and easier to navigate compared to comprehensive managed care (CMC) plans; (3) there is a need to address caregiver and financial assistance beyond the health care costs; and (4) completing the insurance authorization process leading up to alloHCT is critical, including peer-to-peer reviews. There is limited legislative policy to help ensure access to clinical trials and provide out-of-state benefits and travel and lodging for Medicaid enrollees with SCD. These data provide insight into potential areas that could influence changes in policy to enhance access to curative therapy for SCD.

Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Outcomes among Medicaid and Privately Insured Patients with Sickle Cell Disease.

Compared with privately insured patients, recipients of Medicaid have been reported to have worse outcomes in several clinical conditions and following various surgical and medical procedures. However, the relationship between health insurance status and allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) outcomes among patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) is not well described. We sought to compare alloHCT outcomes between patients with SCD who underwent alloHCT while enrolled on Medicaid versus those who underwent alloHCT while covered by private health insurance. We conducted a retrospective multicenter study using data reported to the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research. US patients enrolled on Medicaid or private insurance who underwent a first alloHCT for SCD between 2008 and 2018 were eligible for this study. The primary outcome was event-free survival (EFS), defined as time to death or graft failure. Secondary outcomes included overall survival (OS), graft failure, acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), and chronic GVHD. Univariate analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method for EFS and OS. The proportion of patients with graft failure, acute GVHD, and/or chronic GVHD was calculated using the cumulative incidence estimator to accommodate competing risks (ie, death). Cox regression was used to identify factors associated with EFS, OS, graft failure, and acute and chronic GVHD. A total of 399 patients (Medicaid, n = 225; private insurance, n = 174) were included in this study. The median duration of follow-up was 34 months (range, 1.0 to 134.7 months) for the Medicaid group and 38.7 months (range, 0.3 to 139.3 months) for the private insurance group. Compared with the patients with private insurance, those on Medicaid had a significantly lower 3-year EFS (75.4% [95% confidence interval (CI), 69.4% to 81%] versus 82.2% [95% CI, 76.9% to 87.8%]; P = .0279) and a significantly higher 3-year cumulative incidence of graft failure (17.2% [95% CI, 12.5% to 22.5%] versus 10.5% [95% CI, 6.4% to 15.4%]; P = .0372). There were no significant between-group differences in 3-year OS (P = .6337) or in the cumulative incidence of acute GVHD (P = .4556) or chronic GVHD (P = .6878). Cox regression analysis after adjusting for other significant variables showed that the patients enrolled on Medicaid had a lower EFS (hazard ratio [HR], 2.36; 95% CI, 1.44 to 3.85; P = .0006) and a higher cumulative incidence of graft failure (HR, 2.57; 95% CI, 1.43 to 4.60; P = .0015), with no significant between-group differences in OS (HR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.47 to 2.07; P = .9765), acute GVHD (HR, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.59 to 1.49; P = .7905), or cGVHD (HR, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.65 to 1.48; P = .9331). That EFS is worse in patients on Medicaid compared with privately insured individuals following alloHCT for SCD provides the rationale for research to better understand the mechanisms by which insurance status impacts alloHCT outcomes among patients with SCD.

Healthcare Costs of Treating Privately Insured Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in the United States from 2004 to 2014: A Generalized Additive Modeling Approach.

OBJECTIVES: The primary objective of this study was to predict healthcare cost trajectories for patients with newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) receiving allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT), as a function of days since chemotherapy initiation, days relative to alloHCT, and days before death or last date of insurance eligibility (LDE). An exploratory objective examined patients with AML receiving chemotherapy only. METHODS: We used Optum's de-identified Clinformatics® Data Mart Database to construct cumulative cost trajectories from chemotherapy initiation to death or LDE (through 31 December 2014) for US patients aged 20-74 years diagnosed between 1 March 2004 and 31 December 2013 (n = 187 alloHCT; n = 253 chemotherapy only). We used generalized additive modeling (GAM) to predict expected trajectories and bootstrapped confidence intervals (CIs) at user-specified intervals conditional on dates of alloHCT and death or LDE relative to chemotherapy initiation. RESULTS: Expected costs (in 2017 values) for a hypothetical patient receiving alloHCT 60 days after chemotherapy initiation and followed for 5 years were $US572,000 (95% CI 517,000-633,000); $US119,000 (95% CI 51,000-192,000); $US102,000 (95% CI 0-285,000); $US79,000 (95% CI 0-233,000), for years 1-4, respectively, and either $US494,000 (95% CI 212,000-799,000) or $US108,000 (95% CI 0-230,000) in year 5, whether the patient died or was lost to follow-up on day 1825, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Rates of cost accrual varied over time since chemotherapy initiation, with accelerations around the time of alloHCT and death. GAM is a potentially useful approach for imputing longitudinal costs relative to treatment initiation and one or more intercurrent, clinical, or terminal events in randomized controlled trials or registries with unrecorded costs or for dynamic decision-analytic models.

Prevalence of Food Insecurity in Low-Income Neighborhoods in West Texas.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of food insecurity and the coping strategies and to investigate the role of safety nets among low-income households in urban and rural west Texas. DESIGN: The Core Food Security Module, an 18-item scale, was used in a cross-sectional purposeful convenience sample comparing rural and urban households, whereas the demographic survey assessed participation in food assistance/safety net programs. SETTING: Rural and urban neighborhoods in west Texas. PARTICIPANTS: Sample size of 191 participants from low-income households, predominantly African American and Hispanic people. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: Levels of food insecurity and use of safety nets. ANALYSES: Comparisons between rural and urban households and between food-secure and food-insecure households were analyzed using the chi-square test of independence for categorical variables. Fisher's exact test was used whenever the number in each cell was < 5 in 2 × 2 contingency tables. RESULTS: Prevalence of household and child food insecurity in west Texas was 63% and 43%, respectively. Forgoing balanced meals was a common coping strategy. There was high intake of affordable energy-intense foods. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The high prevalence of food insecurity in low-income households in west Texas led to high intake of energy-intense food with low nutrients, resulting in higher prevalence of anemia, obesity, and other chronic diseases. There was low participation in safety net programs. Educational interventions on food choices are recommended.