Effects and Factors Related to Adherence to A Diabetes Pay-for-Performance Program: Analyses of a National Health Insurance Claims Database

Primary care payment models and avoidable hospitalizations in Ontario, Canada: A multivalued treatment effects analysis

Improving access to primary care physicians' services may help reduce hospitalizations due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions (ACSCs). Ontario, Canada's most populous province, introduced blended payment models for primary care physicians in the early- to mid-2000s to increase access to primary care, preventive care, and better chronic disease management. We study the impact of payment models on avoidable hospitalizations due to two incentivized ACSCs (diabetes and congestive heart failure) and two non-incentivized ACSCs (angina and asthma). The data for our study came from health administrative data on practicing primary care physicians in Ontario between 2006 and 2015. We employ a two-stage estimation strategy on a balanced panel of 3710 primary care physicians (1158 blended-fee-for-service (FFS), 1388 blended-capitation models, and 1164 interprofessional team-based practices). First, we account for the differences in physician practices using a generalized propensity score based on a multinomial logit regression model, corresponding to three primary care payment models. Second, we use fractional regression models to estimate the average treatment effects on the treated outcome (i.e., avoidable hospitalizations). The capitation-based model sometimes increases avoidable hospitalizations due to angina (by 7 per 100,000 patients) and congestive heart failure (40 per 100,000) relative to the blended-FFS-based model. Switching capitation physicians into interprofessional teams mitigates this effect, reducing avoidable hospitalizations from congestive heart failure by 30 per 100,000 patients and suggesting better access to primary care and chronic disease management in team-based practices.

Effects of individual and neighborhood social risks on diabetes pay-for-performance program under a single-payer health system

BACKGROUND

Enrollment in and adherence to a diabetes pay-for-performance (P4P) program can lead to desirable processes and outcomes of diabetes care. However, knowledge is limited on the potential exclusion of patients with individual or neighborhood social risks or interruption of services in the disease-specific P4P program without mandatory participation under a single-payer health system.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the impact of individual and neighborhood social risks on exclusion from and adherence to the diabetes P4P program of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Taiwan.

METHODS

This study used data from Taiwan's 2009-2017 population-based National Health Insurance Research Database, 2010 Population and Housing Census, and 2010 Income Tax Statistics. A retrospective cohort study was conducted, and study populations were identified from 2012 to 2014. The first cohort comprised 183,806 patients with newly diagnosed T2D, who had undergone follow up for 1 year; the second cohort consisted of 78,602 P4P patients who had undergone follow up for 2 years after P4P enrollment. Binary logistic regression models were used to examine the associations of social risks with exclusion from and adherence to the diabetes P4P program.

RESULTS

T2D patients with higher individual social risks were more likely to be excluded from the P4P program, but those with higher neighborhood-level social risks were slightly less likely to be excluded. T2D patients with the higher individual- or neighborhood-level social risks showed less likelihood of adhering to the program, and the person-level coefficient was stronger in magnitude than the neighborhood-level one.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicate the importance of individual social risk adjustment and special financial incentives in disease-specific P4P programs. Strategies for improving program adherence should consider individual and neighborhood social risks.

The Effectiveness of Pay-for-Performance Program of Diabetes Care for Psychiatric Patients: A Regional Psychiatric Hospital Experience

BACKGROUND

The Pay-for-performance (P4P) program of diabetes care has demonstrated successful outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes. However, the effectiveness of this multidisciplinary care model for psychiatric patients has never been evaluated. The objective of this study is to examine the effectiveness of P4P program of diabetes for psychiatric patients with diabetes.

METHODS

This study utilized a retrospective cohort design to examine the effectiveness of P4P program of diabetes care for psychiatric patients with diabetes. The participants' HbA1c (hemoglobin A1c) data of the fourth quarter in 2018 were used as baseline value, while P4P program was not applied yet. HbA1c data of every quarter in 2019 were collected. Generalized estimating equations (GEE) was used to analyze the change of HbA1c level.

RESULTS

The HbA1c level increased slightly in the first quarter, and then decreased gradually since the second quarter. The HbA1c level was significantly lower in the fourth quarter after P4P program intervention (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

P4P program of diabetes care is also effective on psychiatric patients with diabetes, and this multidisciplinary care model could be encouraged and promoted for psychiatric patients with diabetes.

Pay-for-performance for shared care of diabetes in Taiwan

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

Comprehensive and continuous care is crucial for patients with diabetes. The diabetes pay-for-performance (P4P) program launched by the National Health Insurance (NHI) administration in Taiwan provides a financial incentive to facilitate this goal. In this study, we explored the characteristics of patients in the P4P program between 2005 and 2014.

METHODS

Data of patients with diabetes enrolled in the NHI program between 2005 and 2014 were extracted from the NHI research database. Patients were classed as having diabetes if they had three or more outpatient visits within 365 calendar days with an International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification diagnostic code of 250 or hospitalization one or more times with such a diagnosis. The trends of participating in the P4P program were analyzed.

RESULTS

Participation rate of the P4P program increased from 12.1% to 19% between 2005 and 2014. Participants were younger and more likely to be female than those not participating in the program. Lower risks of cancer-related mortality, annual mortality and heart failure were seen in patients participating in the P4P program than in those not participating.

CONCLUSION

Older, male patients with a high disease severity may be less likely to enroll in the P4P program. Although participation rate is increasing, a broad enrollment is expected.

The effect of a hepatitis pay-for-performance program on outcomes of patients undergoing antiviral therapy

Background

To examine the effect of a participatory pay-for-performance (P4P) program in Taiwan on health outcomes for patients with severe hepatitis B or C.

Methods

This study adopted 4-year panel data from the databases of the National Health Insurance Administration (NHIA) in Taiwan. Using the caliper matching method to match patients in the P4P (experimental) group with those in the potential comparison group on a one-to-one basis for the year 2010, we tracked patients up to the year 2013 and employed Cox proportional-hazards regression models to evaluate the effect on patient outcomes.

Results

The P4P group did not have a lower risk (HR = 0.44, P = 0.05) of hospital admission for severe hepatitis patients (i.e. need antiviral therapy). The risk of developing liver cirrhosis was also lower, but the reduction was not statistically significant (HR = 0.92, P = 0.77).

Conclusions

This study found that participatory-type P4P has not resulted in reduced hospital admission of hepatitis B or C patients who need antiviral therapy. The means by which the participatory P4P program could strengthen patient-centered care to achieve better patient health outcomes is discussed in detail.

Inverse relationship between ambient temperature and admissions for diabetic ketoacidosis and hyperglycemic hyperosmolar state: A 14-year time-series analysis

This study aimed to investigate the association of admissions for diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and hyperglycemic hyperosmolar state (HHS) with ambient temperature and season, respectively in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), after excluding known co-morbidities that predispose onset of acute hyperglycemia events. This was a time series correlation analysis based on medical claims of 40,084 and 33,947 episodes of admission for DKA and HHS, respectively over a 14-year period in Taiwan. These episodes were not accompanied by co-morbidities known to trigger incidence of DKA and HHS. Monthly temperature averaged from 19 meteorological stations across Taiwan was correlated with monthly rate of admission for DKA or HHS, respectively, using the 'seasonal Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average' (seasonal ARIMA) regression method. There was an inverse relationship between ambient temperature and rates of admission for DKA (β=-0.035, p<0.001) and HHS (β=-0.016, p<0.001), despite a clear decline in rates of DKA/HHS admission in the second half of the study period. We also noted that winter was significantly associated with increased rates of both DKA (β=0.364, p<0.001) and HHS (β=0.129, p<0.05) admissions, as compared with summer. On the other hand, fall was associated with a significantly lower rate of HHS admission (β=-0.016, p<0.05). Further stratified analyses according to sex and age yield essentially similar results. It is suggested that meteorological data can be used to raise the awareness of acute hyperglycemic complication risk for both patients with diabetes and clinicians to further avoid the occurrence of DKA and HHS.