Effects of Eliminating Drug Caps on Racial Differences in Antidepressant Use among Dual Enrollees with Diabetes and Depression

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Clin Ther
• Personal Author:
  Adams, Alyce S. ; Soumerai, Stephen B. ; Zhang, Fang ; Gilden, Dan ; Burns, Marguerite ; Huskamp, Haiden ; Trinacty, Connie ; Alegria, Margarita ; LeCates, Robert F. ; Griggs, Jennifer ; Ross-Degnan, Dennis ; Madden, Jeanne M.
• Description:
  Purpose
  
  Black patients with diabetes are at greater risk for underuse of antidepressants even when they have equal access to health insurance. This study aims to evaluate the impact of removing a significant financial barrier to prescription medications (drug caps) on existing black-white disparities in antidepressant treatment rates among patients with diabetes and comorbid depression.
  
  Methods
  
  We used an interrupted time series with comparison series (ITS) design and a 5% representative sample of all fee-for-service Medicare and Medicaid dual enrollees to evaluate the removal of drug caps on monthly antidepressant treatment rates. We evaluated the impact of drug cap removal on racial gaps in treatment by modeling the month-to-month white-black difference in use within age strata (<65, 65 or older). We compared adult dual enrollees with diabetes and comorbid depression living in states with strict drug caps (n=221) and without drug caps (n=1133) prior to the policy change.
  
  Findings
  
  The removal of drug caps in strict cap states was associated with a sudden increase in the proportion treated for depression (4 percentage points; 95% Confidence Interval: 0.03, 0.05, <0.0001) and in the intensity of antidepressant use (SMD: 0.05; 95% CI: 0.03, 0.07, p<0.001). While antidepressant treatment rates increased for both whites and blacks, the white-black treatment gap increased immediately after Part D [0.04 percentage points; 95% CI: 0.01, 0.08] and grew over time [0.04 percentage points per month (0.002, 0.01); P<0.001].
  
  Implications
  
  Policies that remove financial barriers to medicines may increase depression treatment rates among patients with diabetes overall while exacerbating treatment disparities. Tailored outreach may be needed to address non-financial barriers to mental health services use among African Americans with diabetes.
  
  
• Subjects:
  Article
• Source:
  Clin Ther. 37(3):597-609.
• Pubmed ID:
  25620439
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC4390474
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  1R01 HS018577/HS/AHRQ HHS/United States ; 5R01AG032249/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United States ; K01 MH092338/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United States ; K01HS018072/HS/AHRQ HHS/United States ; K01MH092338/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United States ; P30 DK092924/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United States ; P30DK092924/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United States ; R01 AG032249/AG/NIA NIH HHS/United States ; R01 DK080726/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United States ; R01DK080726/DK/NIDDK NIH HHS/United States ; U24 CA171524/CA/NCI NIH HHS/United States ; U24CA171524/CA/NCI NIH HHS/United States ; U58DP002721/DP/NCCDPHP CDC HHS/United States
• Volume:
  37
• Issue:
  3
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:a198db75da2e38a18b21058fb5dee722b61b47951092b381469b2d98eea3eb82
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/31310/cdc_31310_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 835.12 KB ]