A Bayesian MultiLayer Record Linkage Procedure to Analyze Post-Acute Care Recovery of Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury.

Understanding associations between injury severity and postacute care recovery for patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) is crucial to improving care. Estimating these associations requires information on patients' injury, demographics, and healthcare utilization, which are dispersed across multiple data sets. Because of privacy regulations, unique identifiers are not available to link records across these data sets. Record linkage methods identify records that represent the same patient across data sets in the absence of unique identifiers. With a large number of records, these methods may result in many false links. Health providers are a natural grouping scheme for patients, because only records that receive care from the same provider can represent the same patient. In some cases, providers are defined within each data set, but they are not uniquely identified across data sets. We propose a Bayesian record linkage procedure that simultaneously links providers and patients. The procedure improves the accuracy of the estimated links compared to current methods. We use this procedure to merge a trauma registry with Medicare claims to estimate the association between TBI patients' injury severity and postacute care recovery.

Characteristics and End-of-Life Care Pathways of Decedents From a National Cohort of Assisted Living Residents.

BACKGROUND: Assisted living (AL) is an increasingly common, place of care for dying persons. However, it remains unclear to what extent residents are able to age in place or if AL represents an additional transition before death. OBJECTIVES: Examine the sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities, health care utilization, and end-of-life care pathways of AL residents before death. RESEARCH DESIGN: A national cohort study of fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries residing in large AL communities (25+ beds) during the month of January 2017 with 3 years of follow-up, using administrative claims data. SUBJECTS: 268,812 AL residents. MEASURES: Sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities, and health care utilization at the end of life. RESULTS: Between 2017 and 2019, 35.1% of the study cohort died. Decedents were more likely than the overall AL population to be 85 years old or older (76.5% vs. 59.5%), and diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (70.3% vs. 51.6%). Most decedents (96.2%) had some presence in AL during the last year of life, but over 1 in 5 left AL before the last month of life. Among those in AL on day 30 before death, nearly half (46.4%) died in place without any health care transition, while 13.2% had 3 or more transfers before dying. CONCLUSIONS: AL is an important place of care for dying persons, especially for those with dementia. These findings indicate a need to assess existing policies and processes guiding the care of the frail and vulnerable population of dying AL residents.

Healthy Days at Home Among Older Medicare Beneficiaries With Traumatic Brain Injury Requiring Inpatient Rehabilitation.

OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to characterize and identify correlates of healthy days at home (HDaH) before and after TBI requiring inpatient rehabilitation. Setting: Inpatient hospital, nursing home, and home health services. PARTICIPANTS: Average of n= 631 community-dwelling fee-for-service age 66+ Medicare beneficiaries across 30 replicate samples who were hospitalized for traumatic brain injury (TBI) between 2012 and 2014 and admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation facility (IRF) within 72 hours of hospital discharge. DESIGN: Retrospective study using data from Medicare claims supplemented with data from the National Trauma Databank. MAIN MEASURES: The primary outcome, HDaH, was calculated as time alive not using inpatient hospital, nursing home, and home health services in the year before TBI hospitalization and after IRF discharge. RESULTS: We found HDaH declined from 93.2% in the year before TBI hospitalization to 65.3% in the year after IRF discharge (73.6% among survivors only). Most variability in HDaH was: (1) in the first 3 months after discharge and (2) by discharge disposition, with persons discharged from IRF to another acute hospital having the worst prognosis for utilization and death. In negative binomial regression models, the strongest predictors of HDaH in the year after discharge were rehabilitation Functional Independence Measure mobility score (ß = 0.03; 95% CI, 0.002-0.06) and inpatient Charlson Comorbidity Index score (ß = - 0.06; 95% CI, -0.13 to 0.001). Dual Medicaid eligible was associated with less HDaH among survivors (ß = - 0.37; 95% CI, -0.66 to -0.07). CONCLUSION: In this study, among community-dwelling older adults with TBI, we found a notable decrease in the proportion of time spent alive at home without higher-level care after IRF discharge compared to before TBI. The finding that physical disability and comorbidities were the biggest drivers of healthy days alive in this population suggests that a chronic disease management model is required for older adults with TBI to manage their complex health care needs.

VA social workers identify factors predictive of enrollment and variability in Veterans' access to aid and attendance benefits.

The Aid and Attendance (A&A) benefit is a cash entitlement for Veterans who served in the U.S. military to obtain personal care services. Our objective was to identify factors contributing to variation in A&A enrollment across VA Medical Centers (VAMCs). We used VA data to calculate the enrollment rate among older Veterans receiving a VA pension or compensation in 2015, then purposefully sampled social work leaders at 15 VAMCs with the highest (n = 7) and lowest (n = 8) enrollment rates for interviews. All respondents viewed A&A as an important benefit. Participants at high-enrollment sites indicated strong working relationships with Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) with onsite presence and education about A&A facilitate access. Participants at low-enrollment sites indicated they desired education around A&A eligibility criteria and collaboration with VBA/VSOs. VA and non-VA social workers would benefit from education about VBA's benefits, and this requires collaboration with VBA representatives.

Medication Costs and Use of Older Americans in Assisted Living Settings: a Nationally Representative Cross-Sectional Study.

BACKGROUND: Assisted-living (AL) settings are an important residential care option for old and disabled Americans, but there are no national data characterizing medication use in AL. OBJECTIVE: To investigate medication costs and use of older adults living in the AL settings compared to those in the community, independent living, and nursing home settings. DESIGN: 2015 National Health and Aging Trends Study; nationally representative cross-sectional study. PATICIPANTS: Respondents ≥ 65 years with Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage (n = 5980, representing 32.34 million older adults). MEASURES: Total Part D medication costs; number of 30-day prescription fills; binary indicators for overall polypharmacy (≥ 5 and ≥ 10 concurrent medications), prescription fills of opioid and psychotropic medications including antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids, antidepressants, and central nervous system-active (CNS-active) polypharmacy. RESULTS: Adjusting for demographics, the annual medication costs among AL residents, at $3890, were twice as high as those of their community-dwelling counterparts ($1932; p < .01). All medication outcomes except opioids were higher for older adults in AL compared to community settings. While the adjusted number of 30-day prescription fills among AL residents was slightly lower than that of nursing home residents (89.5 vs. 106.2; p < .05), AL residents experienced equivalent rates of overall polypharmacy ≥ 10 medications (30.2% vs. 23.5%), antipsychotics (30.8% vs. 27.8%), benzodiazepines (30.7% vs. 32.6%), gabapentinoids (21.2% vs. 16.1%), and CNS-active polypharmacy (26.0% vs. 36.9%; p > .05 for all). Patterns of use across settings were consistent when limited to older adults with dementia. CONCLUSIONS: Older Americans in AL experience a prescription medication burden similar to those in nursing homes. AL settings have an important opportunity to ensure their medication-related clinical services and supports match the needs of their residents.

Potentially More Out of Reach: Public Reporting Exacerbates Inequities in Home Health Access.

Policy Points Public reporting is associated with both mitigating and exacerbating inequities in high-quality home health agency use for marginalized groups. Ensuring equitable access to home health requires taking a closer look at potentially inequitable policies to ensure that these policies are not inadvertently exacerbating disparities as home health public reporting potentially does. Targeted federal, state, and local interventions should focus on raising awareness about the five-star quality ratings among marginalized populations for whom inequities have been exacerbated. CONTEXT: Literature suggests that public reporting of quality may have the unintended consequence of exacerbating disparities in access to high-quality, long-term care for older adults. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of the home health five-star ratings on changes in high-quality home health agency use by race, ethnicity, income status, and place-based factors. METHODS: We use data from the Outcome and Assessment Information Set, Medicare Enrollment Files, Care Compare, and American Community Survey to estimate differential access to high-quality home health agencies between July 2014 and June 2017. To estimate the impact of the home health five-star rating introduction on the use of high-quality home health agencies, we use a longitudinal observational pretest-posttest design. FINDINGS: After the introduction of the home health five-star ratings in 2016, we found that adjusted rates of high-quality home health agency use increased for all home health patients, except for Hispanic/Latine and Asian American/Pacific Islander patients. Additionally, we found that the disparity in high-quality home health agency use between low-income and higher-income home health patients was exacerbated after the introduction of the five-star quality ratings. We also observed that patients within predominantly Hispanic/Latine neighborhoods had a significant decrease in their use of high-quality home health agencies, whereas patients in predominantly White and integrated neighborhoods had a significant increase in high-quality home health agency use. Other neighborhoods experience a nonsignificant change in high-quality home health agency use. CONCLUSIONS: Policymakers should be aware of the potential unintended consequences for implementing home health public reporting, specifically for Hispanic/Latine, Asian American/Pacific Islander, and low-income home health patients, as well as patients residing in predominantly Hispanic/Latine neighborhoods. Targeted interventions should focus on raising awareness around the five-star ratings.

Risk factors for Veteran food insecurity: findings from a National US Department of Veterans Affairs Food Insecurity Screener.

OBJECTIVE: Food insecurity is associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. The US Veterans Health Administration (VHA) began universal food insecurity screening in 2017. This study examined prevalence and correlates of food insecurity among Veterans screened. DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional study using VHA administrative data. Multivariable logistic regression models were estimated to identify sociodemographic and medical characteristics associated with a positive food insecurity screen. SETTING: All US Veterans Administration (VA) medical centres (n 161). PARTICIPANTS: All Veterans were screened for food insecurity since screening initiation (July 2017-December 2018). RESULTS: Of 3 304 702 Veterans screened for food insecurity, 44 298 were positive on their initial screen (1·3 % of men; 2·0 % of women). Food insecurity was associated with identifying as non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic. Veterans who were non-married/partnered, low-income Veterans without VA disability-related compensation and those with housing instability had higher odds of food insecurity, as did Veterans with a BMI < 18·5, diabetes, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Prior military sexual trauma (MST) was associated with food insecurity among both men and women. Women screening positive, however, were eight times more likely than men to have experienced MST (48·9 % v. 5·9 %). CONCLUSIONS: Food insecurity was associated with medical and trauma-related comorbidities as well as unmet social needs including housing instability. Additionally, Veterans of colour and women were at higher risk for food insecurity. Findings can inform development of tailored interventions to address food insecurity such as more frequent screening among high-risk populations, onsite support applying for federal food assistance programs and formal partnerships with community-based resources.

Research Letter: Characterization of Older Adults Hospitalized With Traumatic Brain Injury Admitted to Long-Term Acute Care Hospitals.

OBJECTIVE: To describe patient, hospital, and geographic characteristics of older adult Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and admitted to long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs). SETTING: Acute hospital and LTACH facilities. PARTICIPANTS: In total, 15 148 Medicare beneficiaries 65 years and older with an acute TBI hospitalization who were discharged to an LTACH. DESIGN: This retrospective cohort study used data from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Medicare Enrollment and Provider Analysis and Review data files from 2011 to 2016. MAIN MEASURES: Patient variables (age, sex, premorbid health burden, medical complications and procedures), hospital variables (for-profit status, bed size), and state/regional geographic variation associated with LTACH TBI admission. RESULTS: Older adult Medicare beneficiaries admitted to LTACH facilities following TBI hospitalization were on average 77.1 years old and predominantly White males. In total, 94.6% of the sample had 2+ multimorbidities present during acute hospitalization. Average acute hospital length of stay of the sample was 19.4 days, and rates of acute mechanical ventilation of any duration and tracheostomy procedures were 56.6% and 40%, respectively. Only 4.1% of patients seen in LTACHs were discharged home after LTACH stay; the primary discharge disposition was skilled nursing facilities (41.3%). Geographic analyses indicated that selected Southern and Midwestern states had the greatest number of LTACH facilities and proportion of LTACH admissions. CONCLUSIONS: There has been limited characterization of the hospitalized TBI population admitted to LTACHs. Our findings among older adult Medicare beneficiaries suggest this population is highly medically complex and are seldom discharged home after their LTACH stay. There are also notable geographic variations in LTACH TBI admissions across the United States. More research is warranted to understand long-term functional outcomes among this population.

Memory care reduces nursing home admissions among assisted-living residents with dementia.

INTRODUCTION: We compare nursing-home and hospital admissions among residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) in memory-care assisted living to those in general assisted living. METHODS: Retrospective study of Medicare beneficiaries with ADRD in large (>25 bed) assisted-living communities. We compared admission to a hospital, to a nursing home, and long-term (>90 day) admission to a nursing home between the two groups, using risk differences and survival analysis. RESULTS: Residents in memory-care assisted living had a lower adjusted risk of hospitalization (risk difference = -1.8 percentage points [P = .014], hazard ratio = 0.93 [0.87-1.00]), a lower risk of nursing-home admission (risk difference = -2.2 percentage points [P < .001], hazard ratio = 0.87 [-.79-0.95]), and a lower risk of a long-term nursing home admission (risk difference = -1.1 percentage points [P < .001], hazard ratio = 0.71 [0.57-0.88]). DISCUSSION: Memory care is associated with reduced rates of nursing-home placement, particularly long-term stays, compared to general assisted living.

Mandated Copayment Reductions in Medicare Advantage: Effects on Skilled Nursing Care, Hospitalizations, and Plan Exit.

OBJECTIVES: To address concerns that postacute cost-sharing may deter high-need beneficiaries from participating in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services have capped cost-sharing for skilled nursing facility (SNF) services in MA plans since 2011. This study examines whether SNF use, inpatient use, and plan disenrollment changed following stricter regulations in 2015 that required most MA plans to eliminate or substantially reduce cost-sharing for SNF care. DESIGN: Difference-in-differences retrospective analysis from 2013 to 2016. SETTING: MA plans. PARTICIPANTS: Thirty-one million MA members in 320 plans with mandatory cost-sharing reductions and 261 plans without such reductions. MEASUREMENTS: Mean monthly number of SNF admissions, SNF days, hospitalizations, and plan disenrollees per 1000 members. RESULTS: Mean total cost-sharing for the first 20 days of SNF services decreased from $911 to $104 in affected plans. Relative to concurrent changes in plans without mandated cost-sharing reductions, plans with mandatory cost-sharing reductions experienced no significant differences in the number of SNF days per 1000 members (adjusted between-group difference: 0.4 days per 1000 members [95% confidence interval (95% CI), -5.2 to 6.0, P=0.89], small decreases in the number of hospitalizations per 1000 members [adjusted between-group difference: 0.6 admissions per 1000 members (95% CI, -1.0 to -0.1; P=0.03)], and small decreases in the number of SNF users who disenrolled at year-end [adjusted between-group difference: -16.8 disenrollees per 1000 members (95% CI, -31.9 to -1.8; P=0.03)]. CONCLUSIONS: Mandated reductions in SNF cost-sharing may have curbed selective disenrollment from MA plans without significantly increasing use of SNF services.

Comparing Receipt of Prescribed Post-acute Home Health Care Between Medicare Advantage and Traditional Medicare Beneficiaries: an Observational Study.

BACKGROUND: Medicare Advantage (MA) covers more than 1/3rd of all Medicare beneficiaries. MA plans are required to provide the same benefits as Traditional Medicare (TM), but can impose utilization management tools to control costs. OBJECTIVE: To assess differences between TM and MA enrollees in the probability of receiving prescribed post-acute home health (HH) care and to describe MA plan characteristics associated with HH receipt. DESIGN: Retrospective cross-sectional analysis of claims data, HH patient assessment data, and MA plan data from 2011 to 2017. PARTICIPANTS: Medicare beneficiaries aged 66 and older with an incident hospitalization for joint replacement, pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, stroke, urinary tract infection, septicemia, acute renal failure, or congestive heart failure. MAIN MEASURES: Receipt of prescribed HH as indicated by a HH discharge code and corresponding HH patient assessment within 14 days of hospital discharge. KEY RESULTS: There were 2,723,245 beneficiaries prescribed HH at discharge (68% TM, 32% MA). About 75% of TM enrollees and 62% of MA enrollees received prescribed post-acute HH. In adjusted analyses, MA enrollees had an -11.7 percentage point (pp) (95% confidence interval (CI): -16.8, -6.5) lower probability of receiving HH compared with TM enrollees. In adjusted analyses, HMO enrollees in plans with cost sharing (- 8.4 pp; 95% CI: - 14.3, - 2.5), referrals (- 3.7 pp; 95% CI: - 6.1, - 1.2), and pre-authorization (- 5.1 pp; 95% CI: - 8.3, - 2.0) were less likely to receive prescribed HH. In adjusted analyses, PPO enrollees in plans with cost sharing were -7.0 pp (95% CI: - 12.7, - 1.4) less likely to receive HH, but there was no difference for those with referrals (1.1 pp; 95% CI, - 1.5, 3.7) or pre-authorization (1.6 pp; 95% CI: - 0.6, - 3.9). CONCLUSIONS: Among Medicare beneficiaries, MA enrollees were less likely to receive prescribed post-acute HH compared with TM. As enrollment in MA continues to grow, it is important to examine how differences in utilization relate to outcomes.

Trends in Serious Mental Illness in US Assisted Living Compared to Nursing Homes and the Community: 2007-2017.

OBJECTIVE: Little is known about the prevalence of serious mental illness (SMI) in assisted living (AL) communities in the United States. Trends in the prevalence of SMI in AL communities were examined over time and in relationship to characteristics such as dual eligibility and health conditions. Within- and between-state variability of SMI in AL was also examined. DESIGN: Samples of Medicare beneficiaries who lived in the 48 contiguous states were created: individuals who resided in the community, in a nursing home (NH), and in an AL community on December 31st of each year (2007-2017). We conducted univariate analysis to display the trends in SMI over time in AL compared with NHs and the community. To demonstrate intrastate variability, we examined the prevalence of SMI for each state. We described within-nation and within-state variability using a Lorenz curve and GINI coefficients, respectively. RESULTS: The prevalence of SMI in AL increased by 54%, rising from 7.4% in 2007 to 11.4% in 2017. Residents with SMI were more likely to be dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid than residents without SMI. The prevalence of SMI in AL ranged from to 3.2% in Wyoming to 33.1% in New York. Approximately 10% of AL communities had over half of the sample's AL residents with SMI. CONCLUSION: Given the increased proportion of residents with SMI in AL, research is needed into the mental health and social care needs of this population. Analysis is needed to uncover reasons for variations among states.

Positive Beliefs and the Likelihood of Successful Community Discharge From Skilled Nursing Facilities.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the association of patient and direct-care staff beliefs about patients' capability to increase independence with activities of daily living (ADL) and the probability of successful discharge to the community after a skilled nursing facility (SNF) stay. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study of SNF patients using 100% Medicare inpatient claims and Minimum Data Set resident assessment data. Linear probability models were used to estimate the probability of successful discharge based on patient and staff beliefs about the patient's ability to improve in function, as well as patient and staff beliefs together. Estimates were adjusted for demographics, health status, functional characteristics, and SNF fixed effects. PARTICIPANTS: Fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries (N=526,432) aged 66 years or older who were discharged to an SNF after hospitalization for stroke, hip fracture, or traumatic brain injury. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Successful community discharge (discharged alive within 90d of SNF admission and remaining in the community for ≥30d without dying or health care facility readmission). RESULTS: Patients with positive beliefs about their capability to increase independence with ADLs had a higher adjusted probability of successful discharge than patients with negative beliefs (positive, 63.8%; negative, 57.8%; difference, 6.0%, 95% confidence interval [CI], 5.4-6.6). This remained true regardless of staff beliefs, but the difference in successful discharge probability between patients with positive and negative beliefs was larger when staff had positive beliefs. Conversely, the association between staff beliefs and successful discharge varied based on patient beliefs. If patients had positive beliefs, the difference in the probability of successful discharge between positive and negative staff beliefs was 2.5% (95% CI, 1.0-4.0). If patients had negative beliefs, the difference between positive and negative staff beliefs was -4.6% (95% CI, -6.0 to -3.2). CONCLUSIONS: Patients' beliefs have a significant association with the probability of successful discharge. Understanding patients' beliefs is critical to appropriate goal-setting, discharge planning, and quality SNF care.

Successful Community Discharge Among Older Adults With Traumatic Brain Injury in Skilled Nursing Facilities.

OBJECTIVE: To identify patient, injury, and functional status characteristics associated with successful discharge to the community following a skilled nursing facility (SNF) stay among older adults hospitalized following traumatic brain injury (TBI). SETTING: Skilled nursing facilities. PARTICIPANTS: Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries admitted to an SNF after hospitalization for TBI. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study using Medicare administrative data merged with the National Trauma Data Bank using a multilayered Bayesian record linkage approach. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Successful community discharge: discharged alive within 100 days of SNF admission and remaining in the community for 30 days or more without dying or admission to a healthcare facility. RESULTS: Medicaid enrollment, incontinence, decreased independence with activities of daily living, and cognitive impairment were associated with lower odds of successful discharge, whereas race "other" was associated with higher odds of successful discharge. Injury factors including worse injury severity (Glasgow Coma Scale and Abbreviated Injury Scale scores) and fall-related injury mechanism were not associated with successful discharge. CONCLUSION: Among older adults with TBI who discharge to an SNF, sociodemographic and functional status characteristics are associated with successful discharge and may be useful to clinicians for discharge planning. Acute injury severity indices may have limited utility in predicting discharge disposition once a patient is admitted to an SNF for post-acute care.

Rural-urban differences in diagnostic incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

INTRODUCTION: Understanding rural-urban variation in the diagnostic incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) will inform policies to improve timely diagnosis and access to supportive services for older adults in rural communities. METHODS: Using 2008 to 2015 national claims data for fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries (roughly 170 million person-years), we computed unadjusted and adjusted diagnostic incidence and prevalence estimates for ADRD in metropolitan, micropolitan, and rural counties, and examined differences in survival rates. RESULTS: Risk-adjusted ADRD diagnostic incidence was higher in rural versus metropolitan counties despite lower prevalence. Among beneficiaries diagnosed with ADRD in 2008, metropolitan county residents experienced longer survival compared to residents in rural and micropolitan counties. DISCUSSION: These data suggest that older adults in rural communities may be underdiagnosed with ADRD, and/or diagnosed at later stages of dementia. Further work is needed to develop strategies to reduce this disparity.

Association of Diagnosis Coding With Differences in Risk-Adjusted Short-term Mortality Between Critical Access and Non-Critical Access Hospitals.

Importance: Critical access hospitals (CAHs) provide care to rural communities. Increasing mortality rates have been reported for CAHs relative to non-CAHs. Because Medicare reimburses CAHs at cost, CAHs may report fewer diagnoses than non-CAHs, which may affect risk-adjusted comparisons of outcomes. Objective: To assess serial differences in risk-adjusted mortality rates between CAHs and non-CAHs after accounting for differences in diagnosis coding. Design, Setting, and Participants: Serial cross-sectional study of rural Medicare Fee-for-Service beneficiaries admitted to US CAHs and non-CAHs for pneumonia, heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, arrhythmia, urinary tract infection, septicemia, and stroke from 2007 to 2017. The final date of follow-up was December 31, 2017. Exposure: Admission to a CAH vs non-CAH. Main Outcomes and Measures: Discharge diagnosis count including trends from 2010 to 2011 when Medicare expanded the allowable number of billing codes for hospitalizations, and combined in-hospital and 30-day postdischarge mortality adjusted for demographics, primary diagnosis, preexisting conditions, and with vs without further adjustment for Hierarchical Condition Category (HCC) score to understand the contribution of in-hospital secondary diagnoses. Results: There were 4 094 720 hospitalizations (17% CAH) for 2 850 194 unique Medicare beneficiaries (mean [SD] age, 76.3 [11.7] years; 55.5% women). Patients in CAHs were older (median age, 80.1 vs 76.8 years) and more likely to be female (58% vs 55%). In 2010, the adjusted mean discharge diagnosis count was 7.52 for CAHs vs 8.53 for non-CAHs (difference, -0.99 [95% CI, -1.08 to -0.90]; P < .001). In 2011, the CAH vs non-CAH difference in diagnoses coded increased (P < .001 for interaction between CAH and year) to 9.27 vs 12.23 (difference, -2.96 [95% CI, -3.19 to -2.73]; P < .001). Adjusted mortality rates from the model with HCC were 13.52% for CAHs vs 11.44% for non-CAHs (percentage point difference, 2.08 [95% CI, 1.74 to 2.42]; P < .001) in 2007 and increased to 15.97% vs 12.46% (difference, 3.52 [95% CI, 3.09 to 3.94]; P < .001) in 2017 (P < .001 for interaction). Adjusted mortality rates from the model without HCC were not significantly different between CAHs and non-CAHs in all years except 2007 (12.19% vs 11.74%; difference, 0.45 [95% CI, 0.12 to 0.79]; P = .008) and 2010 (12.71% vs 12.28%; difference, 0.42 [95% CI, 0.07 to 0.77]; P = .02). Conclusions and Relevance: For rural Medicare beneficiaries hospitalized from 2007 to 2017, CAHs submitted significantly fewer hospital diagnosis codes than non-CAHs, and short-term mortality rates adjusted for preexisting conditions but not in-hospital comorbidity measures were not significantly different by hospital type in most years. The findings suggest that short-term mortality outcomes at CAHs may not differ from those of non-CAHs after accounting for different coding practices for in-hospital comorbidities.

Interorganizational Context When Implementing Multisector Partnered Programs: A Qualitative Analysis of Veteran Directed Care.

As the number of Veterans enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and at risk for needing Long Term Services and Supports increases, VHA is shifting from institutional to Home and Community Based Services, such as the Veteran-Directed Care (VDC) program. VDC is a multi-sector program implemented as a collaboration between individual VHA medical centers (VAMCs) and Aging and Disability Network Agencies (ADNAs), entities that sit outside the VHA. Factors that affect establishment of effective multi-sector programs such as VDC are poorly understood, limiting ability to effectively deliver and scale programs. We conducted a qualitative study to describe factors affecting the interorganizational implementation context of VDC. Using constructs from the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR), we interviewed VDC coordinators from seven different VAMC-ADNA partnerships that initiated the VDC program between 2017 and 2018. We identified eight CFIR determinants which manifested similarly for the VAMCs and ADNAs: evidence strength and quality, relative advantage, adaptability, tension for change, access to knowledge and information, self-efficacy; engaging, and champions. We identified three CFIR determinants that varied dramatically across VAMCs and ADNAs: available resources, implementation climate, and relative priority. Our results suggest that interorganizational context plays a critical and dynamic role within multi-sector collaborations.

A New Data Resource to Examine Meals on Wheels Clients' Health Care Utilization and Costs.

BACKGROUND: Access to social services (eg, nutrition) can impact older adults' health care utilization and health outcomes. However, data documenting the relationship between receiving services and objective measures of health care utilization remain limited. OBJECTIVES: To link Meals on Wheels (MOW) program data to Medicare claims to enable examination of clients' health and health care utilization and to highlight the utility of this linked dataset. RESEARCH DESIGN: Using probabilistic linking techniques, we matched MOW client data to Medicare enrollment and claims data. Descriptive information is presented on clients' health and health care utilization before and after receiving services from MOW. SUBJECTS: In total, 29,501 clients were from 13 MOW programs. MEASURES: Clients' demographics, chronic conditions, and hospitalization, emergency department (ED), and nursing home (NH) utilization rates. RESULTS: We obtained a one-to-one link for 25,279 clients. Among these, 14,019 were Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries and met inclusion criteria for additional analyses. MOW clients had high rates of chronic conditions (eg, almost 90% of FFS clients were diagnosed with hypertension, compared with 63% of FFS beneficiaries in their communities). In the 6 months before receiving MOW services, 31.6% of clients were hospitalized, 24.9% were admitted to the ED and 13% received care in a NH. In the 6 months after receiving meals, 24.2% were hospitalized, 19.3% were admitted to the ED, and 9.5% received care in a NH. CONCLUSIONS: Linking MOW data to Medicare claims has the potential to shed additional light on the relationships among social services, health status, health care use, and benefits to clients' well-being.

Measurement validity of the Patient-Health Questionnaire-9 in US nursing home residents.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to assess the measurement properties of the self-reported Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and its 10-item observer version (PHQ-10OV) among nursing home residents. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of Minimum Data Set 3.0 assessments for national cohorts of Medicare Fee-for-Service beneficiaries who were newly admitted or incident long-stay residents in 2014-2015 at US nursing homes (NHs) certified by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Statistical analyses included examining internal reliability with McDonald's omega, structural validity with confirmatory factor analysis, and hypothesis testing for expected gender differences and criterion validity with descriptive statistics. The Chronic Condition Warehouse depression diagnoses were used as an administrative reference standard. RESULTS: Both the PHQ-9 and PHQ-10OV had good internal reliability with omega values above 0.85. The self-reported scale yielded good model fit for a one-factor solution, while the PHQ-10OV had slightly poorer fit and a lower standardized factor loading on the additional irritability item. Both scales appear sufficiently one-dimensional given that somatic items had higher factor loading on a general depression factor than on a somatic subfactor. We were unable to obtain expected gender differences on the PHQ-10OV scale. The PHQ-9 and PHQ-10OV were both highly specific but had poor sensitivity compared with an administrative reference standard. CONCLUSIONS: The PHQ-9 appears to be a valid and promising measurement instrument for research about depression among NH residents, while the validity of the PHQ-10OV should be examined further with a structured psychiatric interview as a stronger criterion standard.

Population of Patients With Traumatic Brain Injury in Skilled Nursing Facilities: A Decade of Change.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the natural history of patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) admitted to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) following hospitalizations. SETTING: Between 2005 and 2014. PARTICIPANTS: Adults who had incident admissions to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) with a diagnosis of TBI. DESIGN: Retrospective review of the Minimum Data Set. MAIN MEASURES: Main variables were cognitive and physical function, length of stay, presence of feeding tube, terminal condition, and dementia. RESULTS: Incident admissions to SNFs increased annually from 17 247 patients to 20 787 from 2005 to 2014. The percentage of patients with activities of daily living score 23 or more decreased from 25% to 14% (P < .05). The overall percentage of patients with severe cognitive impairment decreased from 18% to 10% (P < .05). More patients had a diagnosis of dementia in 2014 compared with previous years (P < .05), and the presence of a terminal condition increased from 1% to 1.5% over the 10-year period (P < .05). The percentage of patients who stayed fewer than 30 days was noted to increase steadily over the 10 years, starting with 48% in 2005 and ending with 53% in 2013 (P < .05). CONCLUSION: Understanding past trends in TBI admissions to SNFs is necessary to guide appropriate discharge and predict future demand, as well as inform SNF policy and practice necessary to care for this subgroup of patients.