Impact of Tobacco Smoking on Health Care Utilization and Medical Costs in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease,Coronary Heart Disease and Diabetes

Objective To determine the impact of smoking on disease-specific health care utilization and medical costs in patients with chronic non-communicable diseases(NCDs).Methods Participants were middle-aged and elderly adults with chronic NCDs from a prospective cohort in China.Logistic regressions and linear models were used to assess the relationship between tobacco smoking,health care utilization and medical costs.Results Totally,1020 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD),3144 patients with coronary heart disease(CHD),and 1405 patients with diabetes were included in the analysis.Among patients with COPD,current smokers(β:0.030,95%CI:−0.032-0.092)and former smokers(β:0.072,95%CI:0.014-0.131)had 3.0%and 7.2%higher total medical costs than never smokers.Medical costs of patients who had smoked for 21-40 years(β:0.028,95%CI:−0.038-0.094)and≥41 years(β:0.053,95%CI:−0.004β0.110)were higher than those of never smokers.Patients who smoked≥21 cigarettes(β:0.145,95%CI:0.051-0.239)per day had more inpatient visits than never smokers.The association between smoking and health care utilization and medical costs in people with CHD group was similar to that in people with COPD;however,there were no significant associations in people with diabetes.Conclusion This study reveals that the impact of smoking on health care utilization and medical costs varies among patients with COPD,CHD,and diabetes.Tobacco control might be more effective at reducing the burden of disease for patients with COPD and CHD than for patients with diabetes.

Effects of Adalimumab Entering National Reimbursement on Medical Costs for Patients With Psoriasis:A 4-Year Single-Center Retrospective Study in China

Objective:Adalimumab(ADA)is expensive and rarely used among patients.However,its cost for moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis can now be reimbursed since its addition to the National Reimbursement Drug List(NRDL)in January 2020.Therefore,we conducted this study to estimate the medical cost of ADA and its influencing factors in patients with psoriasis using ADA and thus gain a better understanding of the effect of the NRDL adjustment in China.Methods:This retrospective study evaluated the medical cost of ADA before and after the addition of ADA to the NRDL(2018—2022)among 320 patients in a large professional dermatology specialty hospital.Descriptive analysis,Welch’s analysis of variance,and multiple regression analysis were used to evaluate the medical cost and influencing factors.Results:Before ADA was added to the NRDL,patients’mean total cost and ADA cost were¥24,243.56±16,346.53 and¥20,391.11±14,440.69,respectively.After ADA became covered by the NRDL,the above 2 expenses decreased to¥10,461.19±7,554.66 and¥8,775.27±7,092.16,respectively.This significant decrease in the cost of ADA resulted in a significant 110.5-times increase in ADA use.Statistically significant differences were found in the total cost,patient type(outpatient/inpatient),insurance status(yes/no),reimbursement status(before/after),and age.Medical insurance reimbursement(P<0.001,β=-0.468,before reimbursement=1,after reimbursement=2)was the most significant influencing factor,followed by patient type(P=0.018,β=-0.215,outpatient=1,inpatient=2)and age(P=0.0046,β=-0.174).Conclusion:Medical insurance reimbursement is the most important factor affecting patients’total cost of ADA by reducing the economic burden,enhancing the availability of ADA,and stimulating the need for treatment.

Evaluation of Medical Cost Lost Due to Smoking in Chinese Cities

Smoking induces substantial diseases burden on both individual and the whole society.To identify the true smoking-attributable economic loss, we introduce medical cost accounting as a means to calculate disease-speciflc medical cost, including inpatient and outpatient cost of those diseases caused by smoking. Medical cost is defined as health fesource consumption in terms of money. Cost is allocated to departrpent and services according to coeffcient of benefit and operation time. The study in 1988 indicates that total smoking-attributable medical cost is 2.32 billion RMB Yuan in China, 1.70 billion RMB Yuan for outpatient, 0.62 billion RMB Yuan for inpatient. If indirect cost is included, the cost will be greater. Chronic obstructive emphysema has the highest proportion (55.41%) in smoking attributable medical cost

Medical Resource Utilizations and Economic Burden in Chinese Cancer Patients with Chemotherapy-induced Anemia:A Populational Database Study

Objective： Most of published studies emphasized the medical cost of treating chemotherapy-induced anemia （CIA） by using specific agents, for example, epoetin α, epoetin β, darbepoetin α or combined with red blood cell transfusions, however, the investigation of the overall medical resources utilizations and economic burden of CIA is still limited. Besides, such studies which emphasized Chinese population still lack. The aim of this study is to investigate the medical resource utilization and the economic burden of Chinese cancer patients with CIA by using a populational representative claim database. Methods： The data for this study are from the 2000-2003 Population Health Insurance Research Database （PHIRD） in Taiwan. On the basis of issuing catastrophic illness cards in the enrollment data files, a total of 26,053 beneficiaries were identified from the PHIRD, who were newly diagnosed with these four cancers in 2001 and 2002 （2001： n=12,954; 2002： n=13099）. A generalized linear model （GLM） was employed for analyzing the differences of medical resource utilization and economic burden between the anemic and non-anemic groups. Results： Analyses showed that the anemic patients were significantly more likely to have longer length of hospital stay than non-anemic patients （P〈0.05） across all these four cancers and in two study periods （except women breast cancer in 2002/03）. As regards the health care expenditures, the average one-year total medical cost was USD$8,982 （2001/02） and USD$8,990 （2002/03） for anemic patients among these four cancers, and USD$7,769 （2001/02） and USD$7713 （2002/03） for non-anemic patients （P〈0.0001）. As for ambulatory costs, anemic patients＇ was significantly higher than non-anemic patients＇ for lung cancer （in 2001/02）, women breast cancer （in 2001/02 and 2002103） and the summarized data （in 2001/02）. As for inpatient costs, anemic patients＇ was significantly higher than non-anemic patients＇ for gastric cancer （in 2002/03）, colon and rectal cancer （in 2001/02 and 2002/03）, lung cancer （in 2001/02 and 2002/03）, women breast cancer （in 2001/02） and the summarized data （in 2001/02 and 2002/03）. Conclusion： This study is the first study to demonstrate that cancer patients who receive chemotherapy and with anemia utilize more medical resources and have heavier economic burden among Chinese cancer patients. Although the Population Health Insurance Program in Taiwan was established to provide more low-burdened medical care for all cancer patients, further effort is still needed to reduce the economic burden for cancer patients who have specific complications.

Cost and value in medical education:the role of discounting

Medical education is an expensive activity.It is also a very long-term activity.Medical education interventions today will have impact up for 40 years into the future as today＇s medical students continue to practice over a long career.The expense of medical education has led to a new interest in how to ensure maximum returns for educational investment.The new discipline of cost and value in medical education is clearly in its infancy with relatively few papers so far reporting rigorous results on the cost effectiveness or cost benefit or cost utility ratios of education interventions.

Economic burden of irritable bowel syndrome in China

AIM To estimate annual direct and indirect costs for patients diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome(IBS) and subtypes.METHODS Patients completed a standardized questionnaire concerning usage of healthcare resources, travel costs, meals, and productivity loss of patients when seeking treatment for IBS. Total annual costs per patient were calculated as the sum of direct(including medical and nonmedical) and indirect costs. Total annual costs per patient among various IBS subtypes were compared. Analysis of variance and bootstrapped independent sample t-tests were performed to determine differences between groups after controlling for IBS subtypes.RESULTS A total of 105 IBS patients(64.80% female), mean age of 57.12 years ± 10.31 years), mean disease duration of 4.31 years ± 5.40 years, were included. Total annual costs per patient were estimated as CNy18262.84(USD2933.08). Inpatient and outpatient healthcare use were major cost drivers, accounting for 46.41%and 23.36% of total annual costs, respectively. Productivity loss accounted for 25.32% of total annual costs. The proportions of direct and indirect costs were similarto published studies in other countries. Nationally, the total costs of managing IBS would amount to CNy123.83 billion(USD1.99 billion). Among the IBS subtypes, total annual costs per patient of IBS-M was highest at CNy18891.18(USD3034). Furthermore, there was significant difference in productivity loss among IBS subtypes(P = 0.031).CONCLUSION IBS imposes a huge economic burden on patients and healthcare systems, which could account for 3.3% of the total healthcare budget for the entire Chinese nation. More than two-thirds of total annual costs of IBS consist of inpatient and outpatient healthcare use. Among the subtypes, IBS-M patients appear to have the greatest economic burden but require further confirmation.

Real-world cost-effectiveness associated with infliximab maintenance therapy for moderate to severe Crohn's disease in China

BACKGROUND Infliximab was the first approved biologic treatment for moderate to severe Crohn's disease(MS-CD) in China. However, the cost-effectiveness of infliximab maintenance therapy(IMT) for MS-CD relative to conventional maintenance therapy remained unclarified.AIM To assess the cost-effectiveness of IMT for MS-CD in Chinese patients from the perspective of Chinese public insurance payer.METHODS A cohort of MS-CD patients managed in a Chinese tertiary care hospital was created to compare IMT with conventional maintenance therapy(CMT) for clinical outcomes and direct medical costs over a 1-year observation time using conventional regression analyses. A decision-analytic model with the generated evidence was constructed to assess the cost-effectiveness of IMT relative to CMT using reimbursed medical costs.RESULTS Based on the included 389 patients, IMT was associated with significantly higher disease remission chance [odds ratio: 4.060, P = 0.003], lower risk of developing new complications(odds ratio: 0.527, P = 0.010), higher utility value for quality of life(coefficient 0.822, P = 0.008), and lower total hospital costs related to disease management(coefficient-0.378, P = 0.008) than CMT. Base-case cost-effectiveness analysis estimated that IMT could cost Chinese health insurance payers $55260 to gain one quality-adjusted life year(QALY). The cost-effectiveness of IMT was mainly driven by the estimate of quality of life, treatment efficacy of maintenance therapy, mortality risk associated with active disease, and unit price of infliximab. The probability that IMT was cost-effective at a willingness-to-pay threshold of three times gross domestic product [2018 Chinese gross domestic product per capita(GDPPC)] was 86.4%.CONCLUSION IMT significantly improved real-world health outcomes and cost the Chinese public health insurance payers less than one GDPPC to gain one QALY in Chinese MS-CD patients.

基于患者医疗服务成本追踪的病种成本核算与应用研究

医疗服务成本核算已成为医院管理的巨大挑战,目前医院较多采用的是基于医疗项目成本叠加的病种成本核算,在实际操作中存在诸多问题和困难。为了寻求核算病种成本的新思路,本文探讨了基于患者个体的医疗服务成本核算理论与实践,给出该成本核算的方式与结果分析,并针对这一方式进行了讨论。

Trends in Injury-related Incidence and Mortality Among Inpatients in Guangdong Province in 1997-2001

Objective Currently, China is in short of thorough and systemic data concerning the patterns and incidence of injuries and related deaths. Guangdong Province as one of the economically advanced areas in China is faced with a relatively serious injury problem, and investigation of this problem in this Province will provide valuable information for other provinces and areas in this Country, as well as scientific basis for policy making for injury prevention and control. Methods Analyses are based on the computerized hospital discharge data collected from 322 hospitals in Guangdong Province between 1997 and 2001. Diagnoses are coded according to the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM). Results The total hospitalization rate related with injuries increased year by year from 1997 to 2001. The ratio of case-fatality has a decline trend for all injury inpatients, who were mainly caused by motor vehicle accidents, unintentional falls, puncture and cut by machine and others. The constituent ratio of death among patients caused by motor vehicle accidents accounted for 56.13% among the total deaths, which ranked as the first place. The direct medical cost also had an increased trend. Conclusions Data on injuries requiring hospitalization can be used to design and target more effective injury prevention programs. Injury prevention would decrease human sufferings, disability, and associated economic losses.

Can Low-Price Hospitals Ease The High Cost of Medical Services?

Going to a hospital is not an easy matter for most Chinese people, with overcrowding and soaring medical costs having become two focuses of public complaint. China's medical system has been on a marketization drive since the 1980s. A July 2005 report by the Development Research Center of the State Council, a think tank under China's cabinet, however, came to

Economic burden and its associated factors of hospitalized patients infected with A (H7N9) virus: a retrospective study in Eastern China, 2013–2014

Background:H7N9 continues to cause human infections and remains a pandemic concern.Understanding the economic impacts of this novel disease is important for making decisions on health resource allocation,including infectious disease prevention and control investment.However,there are limited data on such impacts.Methods:Hospitalized laboratory-confirmed H7N9 patients or their families in Jiangsu Province of China were interviewed.Patients’direct medical costs of hospitalization were derived from their hospital bills.A generalized linear model was employed to estimate the mean direct medical costs of patients with different characteristics.Results:The mean direct cost of hospitalization for H7N9 was estimated to be¥71060(95%CI,48180–104820),i.e.,US$10996(95%CI,7455–16220),and was¥12060(US$1861),¥136120(US$21001)and¥218610(US$33728)for those who had mild or severe symptoms or who died,respectively.The principal components of the total fees differed among patients with different disease severity,although medication fees were always the largest contributors.Disease severity,proportion of reimbursement and family member monthly average income were identified as the key factors that contributed to a patient’s direct medical cost of hospitalization.Conclusions:The direct medical costs of hospitalized patients with H7N9 are significant,and far surpass the annual per capita income of Jiangsu Province,China.The influencing factors identified should be taken into account when developing related health insurance policies and making health resource allocation.Trial registration:Not applicable.This is a survey study with no health care intervention implemented on human participants.

Minimally invasive surgery alone compared with intensity-modulated radiotherapy for primary stage I nasopharyngeal carcinoma

Background:The National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines recommend intensity-modulated radiotherapy(IMRT)as the primary curative treatment for newly diagnosed nasopharyngeal carcinoma(NPC),but the radiation-related complications and relatively high medical costs remain a consequential burden for the patients.Endoscopic nasopharyngectomy(ENPG)was successfully applied in recurrent NPC with radiation free and relatively low medical costs.In this study,we examined whether ENPG could be an effective treatment for localized stage I NPC.Methods:Ten newly diagnosed localized stage I NPC patients voluntarily received ENPG alone from June 2007 to September 2017 in Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center.Simultaneously,the data of 329 stage I NPC patients treated with IMRT were collected and used as a reference cohort.The survival outcomes,quality of life(QOL),and medical costs between two groups were compared.Results:After a median follow-up of 59.0 months(95%CI 53.4-64.6),no death,locoregional recurrence,or distant metastasis was observed in the 10 patients treated with ENPG.The 5-year overall survival,local relapse-free survival,regional relapse-free survival,and distant metastasis-free survival among the ENPG-treated patients was similar to that among the IMRT-treated patients(100%vs.99.1%,100%vs.97.7%,100%vs.99.0%,100%vs.97.4%,respectively,P>0.05).In addition,compared with IMRT,ENPG was associated with decreased total medical costs($4090.42±1502.65 vs.$12620.88±4242.65,P<0.001)and improved QOL scores including dry mouth(3.3±10.5 vs.34.4±25.8,P<0.001)and sticky saliva(3.3±10.5 vs.32.6±23.3,P<0.001).Conclusions:ENPG alone was associated with promising long-term survival outcomes,low medical costs,and satisfactory QOL and might therefore be an alternative strategy for treating newly diagnosed localized stage I NPC patients who refused radiotherapy.However,the application of ENPG should be prudent,and prospective clinical tri-als were needed to further verify the results.

Multi-source financing for tuberculosis treatment in China: key issues and challenges

Background:The End Tuberculosis(TB)Strategy of the World Health Organization highlights the need for patientcentered care and social protection measures that alleviate the financial hardships faced by many TB patients.In China,TB treatments are paid for by earmarked government funds,social health insurance,medical assistance for the poor,and out-of-pocket payments from patients.As part of Phase III of the China-Gates TB project,this paper introduces multi-source financing ofTB treatment in the three provinces of China and analyzes the challenges of moving towards universal coverage and its implications of multi-sectoral engagement for TB care.Main text:The new financing policies forTB treatment in the three provinces include increased reimbursement forTB outpatient care,linkage ofTB treatment with local poverty alleviation programs,and use of local government funds to cover some costs to reduce out-of-pocket expenses.However,there are several challenges in reducing the financial burdens faced byTB patients.First,medical costs must be contained by reducing the profit-maximizing behaviors of hospitals.Second,treatment forTB and multi-drug resistant TB(MDR-TB)is only available at county hospitals and city or provincial hospitals,respectively,and these hospitals have low reimbursement rates and high co-payments.Third,many patients with TB and MDR-TB are at the edge of poverty,and therefore ineligible for medical assistance,which targets extremely poor individuals.In addition,the local governments of less developed provinces often face fiscal difficulties,making it challenging to use of local government funds to provide financial support for TB patients.We suggest that stakeholders at multiple sectors should engage in transparent and responsive communications,coordinate policy developments,and integrate resources to improve the integration of social protection schemes.Conclusions:The Chinese government is examining the establishment of multi-source financing forTB treatment by mobilization of funds from the government and social protection schemes.These efforts require strengthening the cooperation of multiple sectors and improving the accountability of different government agencies.All key stakeholders must take concrete actions in the near future to assure significant progress toward the goal of alleviating the financial burden faced byTB and MDR-TB patients.

Research on 2041 Cases of High Inpatient Expenditure and Influence Factors during 3 Years in a Single Center

Background：The study was to explore the causes of high inpatient expenditure through analyzing the distribution characteristics as well as the influence factors of high inpatient expenditure cases during 3 years within a Grade-A tertiary hospital through various aspects and multiple angles,thus identifying the major influence factors for high medical expenditure to develop further research.Methods：We retrospectively studied 204l inpatient cases which cost more than RMB 100,000 Yuan per case in a Grade-A tertiary hospital from 2013 to 2015.We analyzed the compositions of the medical cost to evaluate the major factors that cause the high inpatient expenditure.All the data and materials were collected from medical record system,and the statistical methods included t-test,variance of analysis,and multivariate linear regression.Results：The average cost of the 2,041 cases was RMB 152,173 Yuan for medicines and materials of medical costs,which respectively accounted for 33.03% and 32.32% of the total cost;and the average length of hospital stay was 28.39 days/person.Diseases of skeletal and muscular system,circulatory system,and tumor were the top three disease categories of high inpatient expenditure,which accounted for 39.00%,33.46%,and 18.03%,respectively.Complications,criticality of the disease,gender of the patients,the occurrence of death,and the excessive length of hospital stay all had great impacts on average medical expenditure,while age,hospital infection,and surgery showed no significant impact on average medical cost.Conclusions：The main factors for high inpatient expenditure included the inadequate use of high-value medicines and materials,lacking cost control measures within the hospital,the excessive length of hospital stay for inpatients,and the unnecessary treatment for the patients.