Care for Elderly Heart Attack Patients by HMOs Is at Least as Good as Fee-for-service Plans

Press Release Date: September 27, 1999

Elderly heart attack patients in Minnesota who were covered by health maintenance organizations (HMOs) received life-saving thrombolytic treatments at least as often as those covered by fee-for-service (FFS) plans. In addition, they were slightly more likely to have received emergency transportation and aspirin therapy, according to a study funded by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) and published in the September 27, 1999, issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

"This study is an example of the research that the nation needs to facilitate evidence-based decision making by policy makers as well as by clinicians and patients," said John M. Eisenberg, M.D., AHCPR administrator.

The research team, headed by Stephen B. Soumerai, Sc.D., of Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, reviewed the medical records of 2,304 elderly Medicare patients who were admitted with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) to 20 hospitals in Minnesota from October 1992 through July 1993, and from July 1995 through April 1996. They found that the speed with which patients received care and the quality of that care were of equal or slightly higher quality under HMO coverage versus FFS coverage.

Researchers also looked at other dimensions of care for persons with AMI, including their use of emergency transportation and whether they received aspirin therapy in addition to thrombolytic medication. Patients with HMO coverage were slightly more likely to have used an ambulance to get to the hospital.

The researchers attributed this to HMOs' around-the-clock telephone triage systems that encourage patients with acute symptoms to use emergency transportation. Patients with HMO coverage also were slightly more likely to have received aspirin therapy, which researchers believe is because HMOs employ a larger percentage of younger physicians who may be more aware of newer drug treatments.

"Objective quality standards need to be developed in all settings and for all insurers, not only for HMOs, said Dr. Soumerai. "This paper provides evidence that substantial opportunities exist to decrease preventable deaths, for example, by increasing use of beta blockers and aspirin and reducing delays to the hospital."

The researchers note that all of Minnesota's HMOs are non-profit; they do not know if HMO performance would be as high in a for-profit setting. Study details can be found in "Timeliness and Quality of Care for Elderly Patients with Acute Myocardial Infarction Under Health Maintenance Organization vs. Fee-For-Service Insurance," published in Archives of Internal Medicine, Sept. 27, 1999, 159:2013-2020.

Note to Editors: For an interview with Dr. Soumerai, please contact Bill Schaller in the Harvard Medical School Public Affairs Department, (617) 432-0441 or E-mail: schaller@hms.harvard.edu.

For additional information, please contact AHCPR Public Affairs, (301) 427-1364: Karen Migdail (301) 427-1855 (KMigdail@ahrq.gov); Karen Carp, (301) 427-1858 (KCarp@ahrq.gov).

Internet Citation:

Care for Elderly Heart Attack Patients by HMOs Is at Least as Good as Fee-for-service Plans. Press Release, September 27, 1999. Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/news/press/pr1999/hmohrtpr.htm