Prescription drug insurance coverage, drug utilization, and cost-related non-adherence

Engelhardt, Gary V. “Prescription drug insurance coverage, drug utilization, and cost-related non-adherence”. CRR WP 2011-19, Chestnut Hill, Mass.: Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, November 2011. http://hdl.handle.net/2345/bc-ir:104839.
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Abstract

This paper uses the substantial increase in prescription drug insurance coverage from the adoption of Part D to generate new estimates the impact of coverage on drug utilization and cost-related non-adherence. The analysis uses detailed panel data on the elderly before and after the implementation of Part D drawn from the 2005 and 2007 Prescription Drug Study (PDS), administered as a supplement to the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), a large nationally representative survey of Americans aged 50 and older. Fixed-effect estimates suggest that gaining coverage results in a 15 percent increase in utilization. These results are consistent with the lower end of estimates in the literature. Gaining coverage also is associated with a 20-50 percent reduction in the incidence of cost-related non-adherence. However, even among the uninsured, only a relatively small proportion of drugs (12 percent) are associated with episodes of cost-related non-adherence. So, these large reductions apply to a small slice of all drugs.

Title
Prescription drug insurance coverage, drug utilization, and cost-related non-adherence: Evidence from the Medicare Part D expansion
Author
Engelhardt, Gary V.
Center
Center for Retirement Research
Genre
working paper
Date Issued
November 2011
Publisher
Center for Retirement Research at Boston College
Series Title
CRR WP
Series Number
2011-19
Persistent Link
http://hdl.handle.net/2345/bc-ir:104839
Use Restrictions
These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright Law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. The publisher or original authors may retain copyright to the materials.
Subject
Health/long-term care

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