Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34588211›Full record

ArticleDiabetes care2022

Diabetes Microvascular Disease Diagnosis and Treatment After High-Deductible Health Plan Enrollment.

J Frank Wharam, Jamie Wallace, Stephanie Argetsinger, Fang Zhang, Christine Y Lu, Tomasz P Stryjewski, Dennis Ross-Degnan, Joseph P Newhouse

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Diabetes care, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

J Frank WharamDivision of Health Policy and Insurance Research, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA.ORCID 0000-0003-2053-0757
Jamie WallaceUniversity of Washington, Seattle, WA.
Stephanie ArgetsingerDivision of Health Policy and Insurance Research, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA.
Fang ZhangDivision of Health Policy and Insurance Research, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA.
Christine Y LuDivision of Health Policy and Insurance Research, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA.
Tomasz P StryjewskiTallman Eye Associates, Lawrence, MA.
Dennis Ross-DegnanDivision of Health Policy and Insurance Research, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA.
Joseph P NewhouseDepartment of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.

Funding

Translational Research Core - Health Engagement & Action Translational (HEAT)P30DK092924 · NIDDK · KAISER FOUNDATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE · PI Alyce Sophia Adams, HILARY Kessler SELIGMAN · 2011 to 2026
$9.2M
Impact of Emerging Health Insurance Designs on Diabetes ComplicationsR01DK100304 · NIDDK · HARVARD PILGRIM HEALTH CARE, INC. · PI WHARAM, JAMES FRANKLIN · 2014 to 2017
$2.0M
NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK092924NIDDK NIH HHS R01 DK100304
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe Affordable Care Act mandates that primary preventive services have no out-of-pocket costs but does not exempt secondary prevention from out-of-pocket costs. Most commercially insured patients with diabetes have high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) that subject key microvascular disease-related services to high out-of-pocket costs. Brief treatment delays can significantly worsen microvascular disease outcomes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND

methodsThis cohort study used a large national commercial (and Medicare Advantage) health insurance claims data set to examine matched groups before and after an insurance design change. The study group included 50,790 patients with diabetes who were continuously enrolled in low-deductible (≤$500) health plans during a baseline year, followed by up to 4 years in high-deductible (≥$1,000) plans after an employer-mandated switch. HDHPs had low out-of-pocket costs for nephropathy screening but not retinopathy screening. A matched control group included 335,178 patients with diabetes who were contemporaneously enrolled in low-deductible plans. Measures included time to first detected microvascular disease screening, severe microvascular disease diagnosis, vision loss diagnosis/treatment, and renal function loss diagnosis/treatment.

resultsHDHP enrollment was associated with relative delays in retinopathy screening (0.7 months [95% CI 0.4, 1.0]), severe retinopathy diagnosis (2.9 months [0.5, 5.3]), and vision loss diagnosis/treatment (3.8 months [1.2, 6.3]). Nephropathy-associated measures did not change to a statistically significant degree among HDHP members relative to control subjects at follow-up.

conclusionsPeople with diabetes in HDHPs experienced delayed retinopathy diagnosis and vision loss diagnosis/treatment of up to 3.8 months compared with low-deductible plan enrollees. Findings raise concerns about visual health among HDHP members and call attention to discrepancies in Affordable Care Act cost sharing exemptions.

Indexed as

Deductibles and CoinsuranceDiabetes MellitusAgedCohort StudiesHumansInsurance, HealthMedicarePatient Protection and Affordable Care ActUnited States

Identifiers

PMID34588211
PMCPMC9346988

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.