Cardiothoracic Surgical Volume Within the Military Health System: Fiscal Years 2007 to 2017.

BACKGROUND: Cardiothoracic surgical services have been provided at 7 military treatment facilities over the past decade. Accurate case volume data for adult cardiac and general thoracic surgical service lines in the Military Health System is unknown. METHODS: We queried the Military Health System Data Repository for adult cardiac and general thoracic cases performed at military treatment facilities in the Military Health System and surrounding purchased care markets for fiscal years 2007 to 2017. Cases were filtered and classified into major cardiac and major general thoracic categories. Five military treatment facility markets had sufficient cardiac case data to perform cost analysis. RESULTS: Institutional major cardiac case volume was low across the Military Health System with less than 100 cardiopulmonary bypass cases per year (range, 17-151 cases per year) performed most years at each military treatment facility. Similarly, general thoracic surgical case volume was universally low, with less than 30 anatomic lung resections (range, 0-26) and fewer than 5 esophageal resections (range, 0-4) performed at each military treatment facility annually. Cost analysis revealed that provision of cardiac surgical services is significantly more expensive at most military treatment facilities compared with their surrounding purchased care markets. CONCLUSIONS: Adult cardiac and general thoracic surgical volume within the Military Health System is low across all institutions and inadequate to provide clinical readiness for active-duty surgeons. Recapture of major cases from the purchased care market is unlikely and would not significantly increase military treatment facility or individual surgeon case volume.

Universal Healthcare Coverage Does Not Ensure Adherence to Initial Colorectal Cancer Screening Guidelines.

INTRODUCTION: Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the USA, and screening tests are underutilized. The aim of this study was to determine the proportion of individuals at average risk who utilized a recommended initial screening test in a universal healthcare coverage system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective cohort study of active duty and retired military members as well as civilian beneficiaries of the Military Health System. Individuals born from 1960 to 1962 and eligible for full benefits on their 50th birthday were evaluated. Military rank or rank of benefits sponsor was used to determine socioeconomic status. Adherence to the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines for initial colorectal cancer screening was determined using "Current Procedural Terminology" and "Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System" codes for colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, fecal occult blood test, and fecal immunohistochemistry test. Average risk individuals who obtained early screening ages 47 to 49 were also identified. RESULTS: This study identified 275,665 individuals at average risk. Of these, 105,957 (38.4%) adhered to screening guidelines. An additional 19,806 (7.2%) individuals were screened early. Colonoscopy (82.7%) was the most common screening procedure. Highest odds of screening were associated with being active duty military (odds ratio [OR] 3.63, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.43 to 3.85), having highest socioeconomic status (OR 2.37, 95% CI 2.31 to 2.44), and having managed care insurance (OR 4.36, 95% CI 4.28 to 4.44). CONCLUSIONS: Universal healthcare coverage does not ensure initial colorectal cancer screening utilization consistent with guidelines no does it eliminate disparities.

Blood lead level surveillance among pediatric beneficiaries in the Military Health System, 2010-2017.

The EpiData Center (EDC) has provided routine blood lead level (BLL) surveillance for Department of Defense (DoD) pediatric beneficiaries since 2011. Data for this study were collected and compiled from raw laboratory test records obtained from the Composite Health Care System Health Level 7 (HL7)-formatted chemistry data, allowing an overview of the number of tests performed and the number of elevated results. Between 2010 and 2017, there were 177,061 tests performed among 162,238 pediatric beneficiaries tested. Using only the highest test result per year for each individual, 169,917 tests were retained for analysis, of which 1,334 (0.79%) test results were considered elevated. The percentage of children with elevated BLLs generally decreased over the time period for children of every service affiliation. All tests throughout this time frame were evaluated using current standards and the protocol followed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of the Navy (DON). The adoption of a standardized BLL surveillance methodology across the DoD supports a cohesive approach to an evolving public health surveillance topic.