Table I.
Patient and hospitalcharacteristics among AHF discharges overalland for the lowest- and highest-cost quintiles
| Characteristics | Total sample (N = 956745*) | ≤ 20th percentile ($100-4000) (n = 191350*) | ≥ 80th percentile ($13200- > 1000000) (n = 191350*) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Length of stay, d, mean (SE) | 5.2 (0.1) | 2.1 (0.03) | 10.9(0.2) |
| Total costs, US $, mean (SE) | 10775 (311) | 2946 (14) | 28588 (853) |
| Demographics | |||
| Age group, y | |||
| 18-44 | 4.0% | 4.3% | 3.9% |
| 45-54 | 8.2% | 8.3% | 8.6% |
| 55-64 | 14.7% | 13.7% | 17.1% |
| 65-74 | 20.3% | 19.0% | 23.6% |
| 75-84 | 27.7% | 27.3% | 28.2% |
| 85+ | 25.0% | 27.4% | 18.6% |
| Gender | |||
| Female | 50.8% | 49.3% | 47.3% |
| Race | |||
| White | 60.4% | 62.0% | 59.2% |
| Black | 19.0% | 20.1% | 18.4% |
| Hispanic | 7.3% | 5.3% | 8.9% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander/Native American/other | 4.2% | 3.1% | 5.7% |
| Missing/invalid/NA | 9.1% | 9.5% | 7.8% |
| Median household income by ZIP code | |||
| First quartile (the poorest) | 33.0% | 38.6% | 28.8% |
| Second quartile | 25.4% | 26.4% | 23.2% |
| Third quartile | 24.3% | 21.8% | 25.7% |
| Fourth quartile | 17.4% | 13.2% | 22.3% |
| Emergency department admission | 75.9% | 71.6% | 71.2% |
| Primary expected payer | |||
| Medicare | 76.0% | 76.0% | 73.9% |
| Medicaid | 7.6% | 7.0% | 8.9% |
| Private insurance | 11.4% | 11.3% | 12.7% |
| Self-pay/no charge/other | 5.0% | 5.8% | 4.5% |
| Comorbidities | |||
| Hypertension | 68.3% | 70.3% | 64.0% |
| Diabetes | 44.4% | 40.9% | 46.5% |
| Renal insufficiency | 41.9% | 36.1% | 48.1% |
| Atrial fibrillation | 38.4% | 36.0% | 41.6% |
| Chronic pulmonary disease | 37.1% | 31.0% | 40.0% |
| Anemia | 31.2% | 23.1% | 36.2% |
| Fluid and electrolyte disorders | 29.4% | 19.5% | 42.1% |
| Obesity | 17.1% | 13.0% | 20.3% |
| Peripheral vascular disorders | 11.9% | 10.6% | 13.6% |
| Died in hospital | 3.1% | 3.5% | 5.6% |
| Hospital characteristics | |||
| Bed size | |||
| Small | 13.8% | 13.9% | 11.3% |
| Medium | 23.6% | 24.6% | 22.0% |
| Large | 62.6% | 61.5% | 66.7% |
| Control/ownership | |||
| Government, nonfederal (public) | 11.6% | 12.0% | 10.6% |
| Private, not-for-profit (voluntary) | 74.2% | 68.9% | 78.4% |
| Private, investor-owned (proprietary) | 14.2% | 19.1% | 11.0% |
| Location (urban/rural) of hospital | |||
| Rural | 15.8% | 20.3% | 9.4% |
| Urban | 84.2% | 79.7% | 90.6% |
| Region | |||
| 1: Northeast | 18.3% | 11.6% | 24.7% |
| 2: Midwest | 24.2% | 25.0% | 20.1% |
| 3: South | 43.2% | 54.3% | 36.8% |
| 4: West | 14.4% | 9.1% | 18.4% |
| Teaching status | |||
| Teaching | 41.3% | 36.1% | 51.0% |
*
National estimates based on NIS weighted samples; all differences at P < .001, except bed size (P = .065) and emergency department admission (P = .811).