Do People with Health Insurance Coverage Who Live in Areas with High Uninsurance Rates Pay More for Emergency Department Visits?

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To investigate the relationship between the percent uninsured in a county and expenditures associated with the typical emergency department visit.

Data sources

The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey linked to county-level data from the American Community Survey, the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, and the Area Health Resources Files.

Study design

We use a nationally representative sample of emergency department visits that took place between 2009 and 2013 to estimate the association between the percent uninsured in counties and the amount paid for a typical visit. Final estimates come from a diagnosis-level fixed-effects model, with additional controls for a wide variety of visit, individual, and county characteristics.

Principal findings

Among

SUBMITTER: Kirby JB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5867177 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature