Table 1.
Sample Characteristics According to Race
| Characteristic | n (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| African Americans n = 6,720 (15.3%) |
Whites n = 37,149 (84.7%) |
|
| Age* | ||
| <65 | 2,064 (30.7) | 6,677 (18.0) |
| ≥65 | 4,656 (69.3) | 30,472 (82.0) |
| Sex | ||
| Female | 3,601 (53.6) | 19,975 (53.5) |
| Male | 3,119 (46.4) | 17,274 (46.5) |
| Marital status* | ||
| Married | 2,300 (34.2) | 17,107 (46.1) |
| Other | 4,420 (65.8) | 20,042 (54.0) |
| Caregiver* | ||
| Spouse | 2,040 (30.4) | 14,914 (40.2) |
| Child | 2,837 (42.2) | 16,190 (43.6) |
| Other relative | 1,505 (22.4) | 4,272 (11.5) |
| Nonrelative | 242 (3.6) | 1,396 (3.8) |
| None identified | 96 (1.4) | 377 (1.0) |
| Diagnosis* | ||
| Cancer | 4,878 (72.6) | 21,657 (58.3) |
| Other | 1,842 (27.4) | 15,492 (41.7) |
| Median household income, $* | ||
| ≤37,280 | 4,650 (69.3) | 8,845 (23.9) |
| 37,281–48,541 | 1,280 (19.1) | 12,240 (33.1) |
| ≥48,542 | 777 (11.6) | 15,916 (43.0) |
| Payment source* | ||
| Medicare | 4,799 (71.4) | 30,783 (82.9) |
| Medicaid | 851 (12.7) | 915 (2.5) |
| Charity | 197 (2.9) | 525 (1.4) |
| Other | 873 (13.0) | 4,926 (13.3) |
| Health maintenance organization enrollment | ||
| Yes | 3,708 (55.2) | 20,337 (54.7) |
| No | 3,012 (44.8) | 16,812 (45.3) |
| Length of stay, days* | ||
| ≤7 | 1,393 (20.7) | 8,832 (23.8) |
| >7 | 5,327 (79.3) | 28,317 (76.2) |
| Hospice location* | ||
| South | 3,129 (45.6) | 19,773 (53.2) |
| Midwest | 2,248 (33.5) | 6,627 (17.8) |
| West | 690 (10.3) | 9,129 (24.6) |
| Northeast | 653 (9.7) | 1,620 (4.4) |
| Hospice preadmission location* | ||
| Acute care setting (hospital or emergency department) | 3,266 (48.6) | 11,981 (32.3) |
| Nonacute care setting | 3,454 (51.4) | 25,168 (67.8) |
| Home | 3,225 (93.4) | 20,994 (83.4) |
| Nursing home or assisted living | 226 (6.5) | 4,132 (16.4) |
| Other | 3 (0.1) | 42 (0.20) |
*
P < .001: chi-square test for difference between racial groups.