Numerous studies have shown that the receipt of adequate prenatal care is associated with improvements in pregnancy outcome, particularly a reduction in the risk of low birth weight. Since medical costs for these low birth weight infants are several times higher than for normal birth weight infants, one would expect that medical costs for newborns would be lower for babies whose mothers have had adequate prenatal care than for those with inadequate prenatal care. Explored in this paper is whether the reduction in Medicaid costs for newborn and post-partum maternal care is greater than the increase in prenatal costs for a Medicaid population. The analysis used a file of 12,023 Missouri Medicaid records linked with the corresponding 1988 birth certificates. A modified version of the Kessner index was used to define the adequacy of prenatal care. Prenatal care costs were $233 higher for pregnancies with adequate prenatal care than for those in which prenatal care was inadequate. Newborn and post-partum costs starting within 60 days after the birth were $347 lower for the adequate prenatal care pregnancies, resulting in a savings of $1.49 for each extra $1 spent on prenatal care. Among the other factors studied in determining this benefit to cost ratio were global billing, Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and participation in Medicaid under the expanded eligibility provisions that were effective in Missouri in 1988.
The burden of tuberculosis on the public health is staggering. Worldwide, annual incidence of new cases is estimated to be about 8 million. Almost 3 million deaths occur yearly. Early case identification and adherence to treatment regimens are the re...
Bourdon, K H; Rae, D S; Locke, B Z; Narrow, W E; Regier, D A;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):663-668
Description:
The National Institute of Mental Health Epidemiologic Catchment Area Survey is a comprehensive, community-based survey of mental disorders and use of services by adults, ages 18 and older. Diagnoses are based on the criteria in the "Diagnostic and St...
Cohen, D A; MacKinnon, D P; Dent, C; Mason, H R; Sullivan, E;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):727-731
Description:
An intervention was developed to promote safer sex and condom use among patients seeking treatment for sexually transmitted disease (STD) at a public health STD clinic in Los Angeles, CA. The intervention consisted of a short group discussion on cond...
Before World War II, Czechoslovakia was among the most developed European countries with an excellent health care system. After the Communist coup d'etat in 1948, the country was forced to adapt its existing health care system to the Soviet model. It...
Patterns and predictors of the use of prenatal care in Hawaii were examined by census tract, taking into account summary measures of socioeconomic status, environmental conditions, and aggregated indicators of pregnancy-related risk characteristics o...
This article describes the development and field testing of five 1-minute videotaped nutrition public service announcements focusing on the role of nutrition in reducing cancer risks. Topics include dietary fat, vitamin A, vitamin C, cruciferous vege...
Kato, I; Nomura, A M; Stemmermann, G N; Chyou, P H;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):712-717
Description:
Use of vitamin supplements and the association with personal characteristics were investigated among 4,654 American men of Japanese ancestry in Hawaii. A total of 58 percent of the subjects who were ages 68 to 90 took vitamin supplements. Among suppl...
Assaf, A R; Banspach, S W; Lasater, T M; Ramsey, J; Tidwell, R J; Carleton, R A;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):695-700
Description:
Health promotion and intervention projects at State and community levels need computerized data bases to assist in making policy decisions and in operating the projects. Computer data base systems are used in entering, storing, retrieving, and analyz...
Fuller, S M; McDermott, R J; Roetzheim, R G; Marty, P J;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):682-690
Description:
A survey of breast cancer and breast cancer screening beliefs was mailed to a random sample of 1,000 women who contacted a telephone bank in response to a television-promoted, reduced-cost mammography project. Beliefs and demographics of women in the...
The Illinois Department of Public Health, in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), monitors trends in the prevalence of prenatal risk factors that are major predictors of infant mortality and low birth weight (LBW). Analyzed data fr...
In view of the fact that the impact of statewide smoking laws on private worksite policies and the smoking behavior of employees has not been evaluated, two cross-sectional surveys were performed in Vermont to measure compliance with such a law: a ra...
Hartgers, C; van Ameijden, E J; van den Hoek, J A; Coutinho, R A;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):675-681
Description:
To enhance the prevention of human immunodeficiency virus infection, factors related to regular participation in the Amsterdam Syringe Exchange and the borrowing of syringes were studied in 131 HIV-seronegative injecting drug users in a 1989-90 surve...
Traditionally, health education for practicing health professionals, as well as members of the public, focuses on the individual and relies on changing personal behavior. However, health care for persons with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)...
Thacker, Stephen B.; Mayberry, Robert M.; Herndon, Joy L.; Warren, Rueben C.;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):718-723
Description:
A survey was conducted to improve the recruitment, training, and retention of epidemiologists in the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) Program of the Centers for Disease Control. The authors compared minority graduates of the program and nonminorit...
Villarino, Margarita E.; Geiter, Lawrence J.; Simone, Patricia M.;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):616-625
Description:
After years of steady decline, there has been an unprecedented resurgence of tuberculosis (TB) in the United States and outbreaks of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). The authors assess the nature, epidemiology, and implications of MDR-TB; p...
Roper, William L.; Baker, Edward L.; Dyal William W.; Nicola, Ray W.;
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):609-615
Description:
Although the American public health system has made major contributions to life expectancy for residents of this country over the past century, the system now faces more complex health problems that require comprehensive approaches and increased capa...
International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis (5th : May 30-June 2, 1992 : Arlington, VA)
Published Date:
1992 Nov-Dec
Source:
Public Health Rep. 107(6):644-646
Description:
In 1990, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists and the Centers for Disease Control made Lyme disease (LD) nationally notifiable and developed a national case definition. State epidemiologists were surveyed about their State LD surveill...
This study compares maternal and infant health and sociodemographic characteristics of U.S.-born and foreign- or Puerto Rican-born Hispanic mothers and their babies, using data from the national vital statistics system and the 1980 National Natality ...
The Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides supplemental food, nutrition and health education, and social services referral to pregnant, breastfeeding, and post-partum women, and their infants and young child...
The authors performed a prenatal care needs assessment for Fresno County, CA, using data from a sample of 11,878 birth certificates for the county for 1989. Birth records, patterns of prenatal care utilization, and low birth weight outcomes in the co...
Ershoff, D H; Quinn, V P; Mullen, P D; Lairson, D R;
Published Date:
1990 Jul-Aug
Source:
Public Health Rep. 105(4):340-347
Description:
The results of a randomized clinical trial of a prenatal self-help smoking cessation program are reported in terms of the pregnancy and cost outcomes. The study population were the socioeconomically and ethnically diverse members of a large health ma...
Matching of Medicaid and health department patients' files to birth certificates was used as a means of evaluating the effect of prenatal care given by public health departments on the birth weights of babies of women in Medicaid. Three years of live...
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