Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States

Using nationwide data, this study estimated and compared annual health care expenditures per person between noncancer and cancer patients, and among patients with the 4 most common cancers. Two-part models were used to estimate mean expenditures for each group by source of payment and by service typ...

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Main Authors: Joohyun Park PhD, Kevin A. Look PharmD, PhD
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2019-10-01
Series:Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/0046958019880696
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author Joohyun Park PhD
Kevin A. Look PharmD, PhD
author_facet Joohyun Park PhD
Kevin A. Look PharmD, PhD
author_sort Joohyun Park PhD
collection DOAJ
description Using nationwide data, this study estimated and compared annual health care expenditures per person between noncancer and cancer patients, and among patients with the 4 most common cancers. Two-part models were used to estimate mean expenditures for each group by source of payment and by service type. We found that cancer patients had nearly 4 times higher mean expenditures per person ($16 346) than those without cancer ($4484). These differences were larger among individuals aged 18 to 64 years than those ≥65 years. Medicare was the largest source of payment for cancer patients, especially among those ≥65 years. Among the 4 most common cancers, the most costly cancer was lung cancer. Ambulatory care visits accounted for the majority of health care expenditures for those with breast cancer, while for those with other cancers, inpatient services also contributed to a significant portion of expenditures especially among younger patients. This study demonstrates that cancer patients experience a substantially higher health care expenditure burden than noncancer patients, with lung cancer patients having the highest expenditures. Expenditure estimates varied by age group, source of payment, and service type, highlighting the need for comprehensive policies and programs to reduce the costs of cancer care.
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spelling doaj.art-8a34b2a025854e55b07fcfcfda1781cc2022-12-22T02:35:10ZengSAGE PublishingInquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing0046-95801945-72432019-10-015610.1177/0046958019880696Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United StatesJoohyun Park PhD0Kevin A. Look PharmD, PhD1University of Wisconsin–Madison, USAUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison, USAUsing nationwide data, this study estimated and compared annual health care expenditures per person between noncancer and cancer patients, and among patients with the 4 most common cancers. Two-part models were used to estimate mean expenditures for each group by source of payment and by service type. We found that cancer patients had nearly 4 times higher mean expenditures per person ($16 346) than those without cancer ($4484). These differences were larger among individuals aged 18 to 64 years than those ≥65 years. Medicare was the largest source of payment for cancer patients, especially among those ≥65 years. Among the 4 most common cancers, the most costly cancer was lung cancer. Ambulatory care visits accounted for the majority of health care expenditures for those with breast cancer, while for those with other cancers, inpatient services also contributed to a significant portion of expenditures especially among younger patients. This study demonstrates that cancer patients experience a substantially higher health care expenditure burden than noncancer patients, with lung cancer patients having the highest expenditures. Expenditure estimates varied by age group, source of payment, and service type, highlighting the need for comprehensive policies and programs to reduce the costs of cancer care.https://doi.org/10.1177/0046958019880696
spellingShingle Joohyun Park PhD
Kevin A. Look PharmD, PhD
Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
Inquiry: The Journal of Health Care Organization, Provision, and Financing
title Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
title_full Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
title_fullStr Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
title_full_unstemmed Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
title_short Health Care Expenditure Burden of Cancer Care in the United States
title_sort health care expenditure burden of cancer care in the united states
url https://doi.org/10.1177/0046958019880696
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