JAMA Network January 18, 2022
Key Points
Question Were there differences in returns to expected rates of US ambulatory care use between more vs less socioeconomically disadvantaged patients in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic?
Findings In this retrospective cohort study that included more than 14.5 million patients, there was an overall increase in the return to expected rates of use of 6 ambulatory care services between March 2020 and February 2021. This increase was significantly lower for patients with Medicaid or those with Medicaid-Medicare dual eligibility than for those with commercial, Medicare Advantage, or Medicare fee-for-service.
Meaning As the pandemic progressed through early 2021, there remained significant differences by insurance type in the return to expected rates in the use of 6 ambulatory...