Association of Frailty with Healthcare Costs Using Claims Data in Korean Older Adults Aged 66

To explore the association of frailty and its eight components with claims-based healthcare costs among South Korean older adults aged 66 from 2009 to 2012.

A cross-sectional design.

Data were obtained from administrative claims, Regular Biennial General and Cancer Screening Examinations, and the 66-year Lifetime Transitional Period Health Examination.

South Korean older adults aged 66 (N = 818,337).

Frailty was measured using eight components (i.e., hospital admission, self-assessed health status, polypharmacy, weight loss, depressed mood, incontinence, visual and auditory problems, and performance on the Timed Up and Go test). Healthcare costs included those associated with inpatient and outpatient care and pharmaceuticals. Multiple Tobit regression was used to assess the association between frailty and healthcare costs before and after propensity score matching.

The mean annual total healthcare cost was $1,403.24 in robust participants, $2,364.78 in pre-frail participants, and $3,655.13 in frail participants. Among participants after propensity score matching, total healthcare costs were higher by $959.58 in the pre-frail (P < 0.001) and by $2,249.70 in the frail group (P < 0.001) compared to the robust group. The presence of each of the eight frailty components was significantly associated with higher total healthcare costs.

By comparing the variables of interest using claims data, our study showed that frailty and each of its eight symptoms was associated with increased healthcare costs. This provides evidence of the need for identifying and managing frailty to reduce healthcare costs among South Korean older adults.