Hospital utilization and expenditures for Medicaid enrollees by major diagnosis group

The distribution of Medicaid hospital discharges and expenditures by major diagnosis group for Medicaid enrollees in California, Michigan, and New York during 1982 are examined in this article. Although hospital expenditures represent a major component of Medicaid expenditures, the extent of variation in Medicaid inpatient utilization and expenditures across diagnoses and between States has not been previously studied. In this article, Medicaid inpatient hospital utilization and expenditure data by major diagnosis group from the Health Care Financing Administration's Tape-to-Tape data base are examined to determine whether significant interstate differences exist.