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Resident medical care utilization patterns in continuing care retirement communities
H S Ruchlin1, S Morris, J N Morris
1Cornell University Medical College, New York 10021.
Health Care Financing Review
|February 2, 1994
Summary
Continuing care retirement community (CCRC) residents and community elders utilized similar Medicare services overall. However, CCRC residents had lower last-year hospital costs but higher nursing home expenditures.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Health Services Research
- Medical Economics
Background:
- Understanding healthcare utilization patterns in aging populations is crucial for resource allocation and policy development.
- Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) offer integrated living and care services, potentially impacting healthcare consumption.
- Comparative analysis of healthcare use between CCRC residents and those in traditional community settings is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate and compare the medical care service utilization and associated costs between elderly individuals residing in CCRCs and those in traditional community settings.
- To identify differences in healthcare expenditure patterns, particularly in the final year of life, between the two cohorts.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of Medicare-covered medical service utilization.
- Comparison of annual per capita expenditures for two elderly cohorts: CCRC residents and traditional community-residing elders.
- Specific examination of expenditures in the last year of life, including hospital and nursing home care costs.
Main Results:
- Overall annual per capita Medicare-covered medical service utilization and expenditures were comparable between CCRC residents and traditional community elders (approx. $2,000).
- In their final year of life, CCRC residents exhibited significantly lower hospital care expenditures ($3,854 vs. $7,268).
- Conversely, CCRC residents demonstrated higher expenditures for nursing home care (Medicare or non-Medicare covered) in their last year of life ($5,565 vs. $3,533).
Conclusions:
- While overall healthcare utilization is similar, CCRC living arrangements are associated with a shift in end-of-life care spending from hospital to nursing home services.
- These findings highlight the importance of considering the full spectrum of care costs, including long-term care, when evaluating CCRC models.
- Further research should explore the factors driving these expenditure differences to inform healthcare planning for aging populations.