Table 1.

Receipt of cardiac medications in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) according to patient characteristics and time period (Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey).^*

Characteristic	Percent (%) of beneficiaries receiving low-intensity pharmacotherapy† for CHD
	1992–1993 (weighted n=6.1 million)	1997–1998 (weighted n=3.0 million)	2002–2003 (weighted n=2.8 million)
Age
65–74 years	91.3	70.6	41.5
75–84 years	95.5	78.4	48.1
≥ 85 years	96.5	87.9	67.8
Gender
Male	94.2	77.8	45.7
Female	93.3	74.6	50.1
Race/Ethnicity
White	93.8	74.7	46.3
Black	92.1	85.2	57.2
Hispanic	99.8	93.5	58.5
Other‡	97.1	86.1	67.5
Educational Level
No high school	96.2	81.1	50.1
High school	93.0	72.9	55
Above high school	41.4	75.1	45.5
Geography
Rural	92.7	75.8	43
Metro	94.1	76.3	49.6
Annual Income
<$10,000	95.8	84.5	60.7
$10,001–20,000	93.9	75.8	44.9
$20,001–30,000	93.2	74.1	53.8
>$30,000	92.4	72.4	45.6
Prescription Drug Benefit
Absent	94.9	78.0	49.7
Present	92.4	75.0	47.1
Comorbidity Score
0–1	94.5	77.9	53.3
2–3	94.5	78.2	51.9
≥ 4	92.6	74.3	44.6
Functional Status¶
Independent	93.5	73.9	46.1
Instrumental ADL impairment only	92.7	77.9	49.8
1–2 ADL impairments	93.1	74.1	46.4
≥ 3 ADL Impairments	96.7	90.1	59

^*Weighted percents.

^†Low-intensity pharmacotherapy defined as no drug or single drug therapy with beta-blockers, ACE/ARBs, or lipid-lowering agents.

^‡Other includes American Indian/Alaskan Native, Asian and other race/ethnicity specified by respondent.

^¶ADL - activities of daily living