Nearly 60% of the time, older breast cancer survivors with high frailty-related needs did not receive Medicare home healthcare, according to a study published Oct. 19 in JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Public Health in College Park analyzed Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results-Medicare data on 134,410 women who were two to 10 years past an invasive breast cancer diagnosis to evaluate whether Medicare’s home health benefit meets survivors’ frailty-related needs.
Here are four notes from the study:
- Medicare home health use rose as survivors became frailer, increasing 1.10 percentage points for each 0.01-point rise on a frailty index.
The increase was steepest among survivors who were never dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid and smallest among those who were always dually eligible, at 1.21 and 0.41 percentage points, respectively. - Long-term survivors had frailty levels similar to those of survivors two to five years past diagnosis but used less home healthcare. Their potential unmet need was similar to that of more recent survivors.
- Among years in which survivors had high frailty-related needs, 59.6% involved no Medicare home health use.
- The researchers said broadening Medicare’s home health benefit to include more personal care and community-based services could help reach survivors with unmet needs.
Read the full study here.
At the Becker's Perioperative Summit, taking place September 14–15 in Chicago, perioperative leaders and healthcare executives will focus on improving operating room efficiency, enhancing patient safety, optimizing staffing and driving innovation across surgical services. Apply for complimentary registration now.
