Utilization of substance abuse treatment services under Medicare, 2001–2002

Abstract In 2006, the Medicare program covered 37 million elderly persons and 7 million persons younger than 65 years, but little is known about substance abuse (SA) service utilization. Using the 5% Sample of Medicare claims data, the study examines individuals who used SA detoxification (“detox”)...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of substance abuse treatment 2009-06, Vol.36 (4), p.414-419
Main Authors: Vandivort, Rita, M.S.W, Teich, Judith L., M.S.W, Cowell, Alexander J., Ph.D, Chen, Hong, M.S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age Factors
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
Databases, Factual
Desintoxication. Drug withdrawal
Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry)
Disabled Medicare beneficiares
Disabled Persons
Elderly Medicare beneficiares
Female
Health services utilization
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Medicare
Medicare - statistics & numerical data
Mental Disorders - complications
Mental health
Middle Aged
Miscellaneous
Older people
Organization of mental health. Health systems
Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Social psychiatry. Ethnopsychiatry
Substance abuse treatment
Substance Abuse Treatment Centers - utilization
Substance abuse treatment utilization
Substance Withdrawal Syndrome - rehabilitation
Substance-Related Disorders - complications
Substance-Related Disorders - rehabilitation
Treatments
United States
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Summary:Abstract In 2006, the Medicare program covered 37 million elderly persons and 7 million persons younger than 65 years, but little is known about substance abuse (SA) service utilization. Using the 5% Sample of Medicare claims data, the study examines individuals who used SA detoxification (“detox”) and/or rehabilitation (“rehab”) services under Medicare in 2001 and 2002. SA claimants less than 65 years of age (disabled) were compared to claimants more than 65 years of age (elderly). The disabled were more likely to have a co-occurring mental disorder than elderly claimants (50% vs. 14%) and more likely to have serious mental illness (21% vs. 2.3%). Disabled claimants were more than three times as likely to receive any detox service as elderly claimants (17% vs. 6%). The rate of claimants receiving rehab services within 30 days of detox is about one third for disabled claimants and one quarter for elderly claimants.
ISSN:0740-5472
1873-6483
DOI:10.1016/j.jsat.2008.08.007