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Updated: Jul 22, 2026
Inverse Probability of Treatment Weighting Propensity Score using the Military Health System Data Repository and National Death Index
Published on: January 8, 2020
Quality and utilization of surgical care among Medicare Advantage beneficiaries
Erin E Isenberg1, Eric Bui2, Nick Kunnath3
1Department of Surgery, University of Texas at Southwestern, Dallas, TX, USA; National Clinician Scholars Program, Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Background:
Over half of Medicare beneficiaries are now enrolled in Medicare Advantage, but there is little understanding of how Medicare Advantage impacts care for common surgical conditions.
Methods:
This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of Medicare beneficiaries who underwent appendectomy, cholecystectomy, colectomy, or hernia repair from 2016 to 2020. Inverse Propensity Score-Weighted analysis was used to compare risk-adjusted rates of postoperative morbidity, mortality, and utilization.
Results:
Of the 1,617,490 Medicare beneficiaries who underwent one of the operations, 574,412 (36 %) were enrolled in Medicare Advantage. Medicare Advantage enrollees demonstrated similar complications (29.6 % vs 29.2 %, aOR 1.02 [95 % CI, 1.01-1.03]) and 30-day mortality (5.9 % vs 6.1 %, aOR 0.96 [95 % CI, 0.94-0.98]), but were more likely to be discharged home (77.8 % vs 74.1 %, aOR 1.31 [95 % CI, 1.28-1.33]) and had fewer readmissions (12.8 % vs 15.2 %, OR 0.82 [95 % CI, 0.81-0.83]).
Conclusions:
Medicare Advantage may reduce post-acute care use and readmissions for common surgical procedures without compromising postoperative outcomes.
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