Table 1.

Sociodemographic Characteristics and Age-Adjusted Stroke Hospitalization Rates by Time, Medicare Beneficiaries Aged ≥65

	Stroke Hospitalizations (%)		Medicare Beneficiaries (%)		Stroke Hospitalization Rate (per 1000)
	1995–1996	2005–2006	1995–1996	2005–2006	1995–1996	2005–2006
Total	999 377	770 033	56 339 366	55 331 267	18.0	13.6
Age, y
65–74	37.8	32.5	54.7	49.9	12.3*	9.1*
75–84	42.7	42.3	33.5	36.1	22.6*	16.3*
85+	19.5	25.2	11.8	14.0	29.3*	25.2*
Sex
Women	56.0	55.0	59.6	57.7	16.3	12.4
Men	44.0	45.0	40.4	42.3	20.6	15.3
Race/ethnicity
Black	9.7	10.4	7.8	8.0	22.3	18.3
Hispanic†	0.6	1.5	0.6	1.6	18.3	12.4
White	87.3	85.3	88.7	87.5	17.7	13.2
Other	2.4	2.8	2.9	3.0	16.2	13.6

^*Age group–specific rate.

^†Hispanic ethnicity is not coded as a mutually exclusive group in the race/ethnicity collected in the Medicare data.