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PubMedDate not supplied

Weighing costs and benefits of adequate prenatal care for 12,023 births in Missouri's Medicaid program, 1988.

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.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1980

Cost-benefit analysis of a prenatal preventive programme against congenital syphilis.

Serologic screening of pregnant women to prevent congenital syphilis has been obligatory in Norway since 1948. Today the incidence of unrecognized, untreated maternal syphilis is approximately 0.2 per 1000 pregnancies. A cost-benefit model is applied to the current prenatal screening programme in Norway. Although may of the benefit parameters are given only an approximate value, or are not valued at all, it was found that the benefit-cost ratio was nearly 2 (1.9), indicating that the economic benefits or savings to the society represent twice the cost of the preventive programme.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed1976

Reproductive efficiency as a social indicator.

An index of reproductive effiency (RE) is proposed as a social indicator that will meet the need to consider various forms of pregnancy wastage, to compare their relative costs, and to guide reproductive health policy accordingly. This article discusses conceptual and measurement aspects of RE. Conversion of wanted to unwanted pregnancies and the reverse, interpretation of abortion in relation to other pregnancy outcomes, defining the end point for the reproductive process and criteria for the events to be included as significant outcomes are conceptual issues. Measurement problems include: whether aggregation is justified, prospective and retrospective tracking of outcomes, record limitations, duplication of adversities in a single pregnancy, and selection of optimal rate for comparison. A measurement of RE for the entire United States based on the National Natality Survey of 1964-1966 is presented, showing 74.5 percent of pregnancies resulting in healthy liveborn infants. For those years, data on abortions could not be included. Within the group of reported pregnancy losses, the importance of congenital abnormalities and low-birth-weight babies is enhanced by application of economic weights based on associated medical care costs. Changing opportunities for birth timing, prenatal and infant care, and control of family size are social means of reducing adverse outcomes associated with teenage pregnancy and high-parity births, often found together with poverty. Successive increments in RE may be progressively more expensive to achieve, and cost effectiveness comparison will be necessary.

Abortion, Legal↗
PubMed1988

The urban community as the client in preterm birth prevention: evaluation of a program component.

Education of communities about preterm birth is essential because preterm birth is a major perinatal health problem, contributing 60-80% of the perinatal mortality in the United States. Preterm birth impacts on the health of the community through the increased morbidity and mortality of the affected children, which leads to higher health care costs and compromised future productivity. The role of early enrollment into prenatal care in the improvement of perinatal outcomes has been established by many investigators. A health education strategy using a communication in the form of a videotaped program was designed in order to increase community awareness about this serious health problem and about the importance of early prenatal care. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate that strategy by: determining the validity of the communication; analyzing its impact on related behavioral intentions of Community Board members; and assessing the association between behavioral intentions and reported behaviors in those Community Board members. A panel of experts in the fields of prenatal care/preterm birth or health education/communication was used to evaluate the face validity of the communication, using the Communication Rating Scale, an instrument developed by James Malfetti, Ed. D. The Fishbein Linear Regression Model was utilized in ascertaining attitudes and social normative factors predictive of behavioral intentions. A nonequivalant control group design was used to measure the impact of the communication on the behavioral intentions of 10 Community Boards in the Bronx, New York. The findings included high ratings by the expert panel; a positive significant difference between behavioral intentions of Community Board members before and after viewing the communication; and significant correlation between behavioral intentions and reported behaviors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Private practice use of real-time B scan ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology.

An informal survey of 25 obstetrics and gynecology practices that use real time B scan ultrasound equipment was carried out to assess the economic and patient-care impact of such equipment. From this informal survey, it can be seen that the incorporation of real time B scan ultrasound scanning into private practice has become economically feasible and useful for the daily clinical management of obstetric patients. The implications and economics of such changes for obstetric health care costs remain to be assessed.

Gynecology↗
PubMed1992

Financial implications of implementing standards of care for diabetes and pregnancy.

This article examines the financial implications of implementing standards of care for pregnancy among women with diabetes, including both the costs of enhanced treatment and the savings of avoided adverse outcomes. Numerous studies have demonstrated the harmful effects of poor blood glucose control for both mother and fetus. Standards set forth by the American Diabetes Association aim to reduce maternal complications and fetal adverse outcomes, such as congenital malformations. Because the precise configuration of resources required to meet these standards was not outlined in the American Diabetes Association statement, a panel of physicians (all specialists in pregnancy care for women with diabetes) was convened to develop a model program. Implementing such a program during the preconception and prenatal periods will represent an intensification of resource use in the outpatient setting. However, through these preventive measures, medical care costs for maternal and fetal complications can be avoided.

Female↗
PubMed1992

A cost-effectiveness analysis of three staffing models for the delivery of low-risk prenatal care.

BACKGROUND: Health care costs are increasing at more than twice the rate of inflation, thus, public officials are seeking safe and economic methods to deliver quality prenatal care to poor pregnant women. This study was undertaken to determine the relationship between the cost and effectiveness of three prenatal clinic staffing models: physician based, mixed staffing, and clinical nurse specialist with physicians available for consultation. METHODS: Maternal and neonatal physiological outcome data were obtained from the hospital clinical records of 156 women attending these clinics. The women were then interviewed concerning their satisfaction with their prenatal care clinic. The financial officer from each clinic provided data on the clinic staffing costs and hours of service. RESULTS: There were no differences in outcomes for the maternal-neonatal physiological variables, although newborn admission to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) approached significance among the clinics. The clinic staffed by clinical nurse specialists had the greatest client satisfaction and the lowest cost per visit. CONCLUSIONS: The use of clinical nurse specialists might substantially reduce the cost of providing prenatal care while maintaining quality, and might thereby save valuable resources.

Ambulatory Care↗
PubMed1992

Estimation of the break-even point for smoking cessation programs in pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Successful programs to help pregnant women quit smoking have been developed and evaluated, but formal smoking cessation programs are not a part of care at most prenatal sites. The cost of such programs may be an issue. Considering the costs of adverse maternal and infant outcomes resulting from smoking, we estimated there would be an amount of money a prenatal program could invest in smoking cessation and still "break even" economically. METHODS: A model was developed and published data, along with 1989 hospital charge data, were used to arrive at a break-even point for smoking cessation programs in pregnancy. RESULTS: Using overall United States data, we arrived at a break-even cost of $32 per pregnant woman. When these data were varied to fit specific US populations, the break-even costs varied from $10 to $237, with the incidence of preterm low birth weight having the most impact on the cost. CONCLUSIONS: It may be advisable to invest greater amounts of money in a prenatal smoking cessation program for some populations. However, for every population there is an amount that can be invested while still breaking even.

Cost-Benefit Analysis↗
PubMed1988

Cost-justification analysis of prenatal maternal serum alpha-feto protein screening.

The costs to an insurer of a 10-year maternal serum alpha-feto protein (MSAFP) screening program were subtracted from future medical care costs avoided by the insurer (benefits) to examine whether such a program would be cost-justified from the perspective of a managed health care system (i.e., result in net costs greater than or equal to 0). The analysis considered MSAFP screening for neural tube defects (NTDs) alone and then was repeated to consider screening for both NTDs and Down's syndrome. Using a 5% discount rate for future dollars, the costs to the insurer of a screening program for NTDs alone over 10 years exceeded costs avoided by $10.00 per person screened. Adding screening for Down's syndrome using the same MSAFP test increased the net cost by $22.00 to a total of--$32.00 per screenee. The estimate of the cost to the insurer was sensitive to assumptions regarding the costs of medical care avoided, the expense of MSAFP, the proportion of screened women requiring a genetic amniocentesis, and the cost of that procedure. The conclusion that screening would not result in a cost savings to the insurer was not changed by reasonable assumptions regarding 1) the appropriate discount rate; 2) the costs of MSAFP; 3) the costs of genetic amniocentesis; 4) the sensitivity of MSAFP; 5) the proportion of the population requiring genetic amniocentesis; and 6) the costs of 10 years of medical care for someone affected by Down's syndrome or an NTD. Other analyses suggested that screening for NTDs or Down's syndrome would be cost-justified when viewed from the perspective of society. The present work suggests this conclusion does not hold when the perspective of the insurer is taken because avoided costs of care realized by society exceed those realized by the insurer.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

An economic evaluation of daycare in the management of hypertension in pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficiency of daycare in the management of hypertension in pregnancy compared with inpatient management with prior domiciliary visits. DESIGN: Comparative study. SETTING: Two maternity teaching hospitals, Glasgow Royal Maternity Hospital which has an established daycare unit and Aberdeen Maternity Hospital with no daycare unit. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Pregnancy outcomes in terms of maternal hypertensive complications, gestation at delivery, mode of delivery, birthweight, Apgar scores, admission rates and length of admission to special care baby unit. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in any of the measured pregnancy outcomes between the two hospitals. The average cost of treating a women with mild hypertension was 154.91 pounds in Glasgow and 136.59 pounds in Aberdeen. The average cost of treating women with a single episode of hypertension and women with a past history of hypertension was 88.65 pounds and 214.12 pounds in Glasgow and 31.18 pounds and 28.28 pounds in Aberdeen, respectively. If these two groups are excluded, the average cost of treating women with mild hypertension was 172.32 pounds in Glasgow and 201.13 pounds in Aberdeen. The majority of women were willing to attend daycare five times per week to avoid admission. CONCLUSION: Daycare management of hypertension in pregnancy is more efficient than inpatient care with prior domiciliary visits for most women, but less efficient for women with transient or previous hypertension. It is very acceptable to women. Domiciliary checking of women with hypertension found at outpatient clinics would reduce resource use.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

An evaluation of the impact of maternity care coordination on Medicaid birth outcomes in North Carolina.

BACKGROUND: Care coordination is an important component of the enhanced prenatal care services provided under the recent expansions of the Medicaid program. The effect of maternity care coordination services on birth outcomes in North Carolina was assessed by comparing women on Medicaid who did and did not receive these services. METHODS: Health program data files, including Medicaid claims paid for maternity care coordination, were linked to 1988 and 1989 live birth certificates. Simple comparisons of percentages and rates were supplemented by a logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: Among women on Medicaid who did not receive maternity care coordination services, the low birth weight rate was 21% higher, the very low birth weight rate was 62% higher, and the infant mortality rate was 23% higher than among women on Medicaid who did receive such services. It was estimated that, for each $1.00 spent on maternity care coordination, Medicaid saved $2.02 in medical costs for newborns up to 60 days of age. Among the women who did receive maternity care coordination, those receiving it for 3 or more months had better outcomes than those receiving it for less than 3 months. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that maternity care coordination can be effective in reducing low birth weight, infant mortality, and newborn medical care costs among babies born to women in poverty.

Continuity of Patient Care↗
PubMed1992

The introduction of cystic fibrosis carrier screening into clinical practice: policy considerations.

Routine prenatal testing for cystic fibrosis (CF) should be halted until the detection rate reaches 95 percent. Pilot studies are needed in order to evaluate the feasibility of meeting education, consent, and counseling requirements in order to facilitate informed reproductive decisions by clients and to minimize the potential for confusion, stigmatization, and discrimination. Primary care physicians may not be trained adequately to provide appropriate information, and prenatal visits may not be an ideal setting. The public's interest in carrier testing, prenatal testing, and pregnancy termination is uncertain because CF patients have an increasing median survival, variable disability, and normal intelligence. Even with a goal that limits testing for the purpose of informed reproductive decision making, the considerable cost of screening per case prevented must be considered before it becomes public policy. Until these issues have been clarified, the duty of primary care physicians is to inform patients of the test's availability and to refer interested patients to qualified genetic counselors rather than to provide the test themselves.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed1992

Antenatal care of low risk obstetric patients by midwives. A randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the practicality, acceptability to patients and salary costs of the antenatal care of low risk obstetric patients by midwives. DESIGN: A randomised controlled trial. SETTING: The antenatal clinic at Westmead Hospital, a teaching hospital of the University of Sydney in western Sydney. PATIENTS: From January 1989 until November 1990, 89 women booking for full antenatal care at Westmead Hospital and classified as low risk were randomly allocated to one of two groups. Group 1 (43 patients) had their antenatal care provided by registered midwives. Group 2 (46 patients) had their antenatal care provided by an obstetrician (either Visiting Medical Officer or Staff Specialist) in a routine hospital antenatal clinic. INTERVENTIONS: Patients in the midwives' clinic were seen by an obstetrician at their first visit to the antenatal clinic and again at 30 weeks and at 40 weeks. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: These were the salary costs of each clinic and the patients' levels of satisfaction. Maternal and neonatal indicators, delivery details and analgesic requirements were also considered. These indicators were planned before data collection commenced. RESULTS: The major differences found were a 28% to 68% salary cost saving and that patients cared for by midwives showed appreciation of the continuity of care and information given at the midwives' clinic. CONCLUSIONS: The care of low risk obstetric patients by midwives in a midwives' clinic showed salary cost savings and high patient acceptance.

Continuity of Patient Care↗
PubMed1990

[A socioeconomic evaluation of the delivery of "Purita" milk to pregnant women in Chile].

A cost-effectiveness socio-economic evaluation of powdered milk delivery in Chile is presented. This 26% fat powdered milk is distributed free of cost to underweight pregnant women through primary health care services technically dependent on the Ministry of Health. A previous pilot study allowed to estimate the change in birth weight distribution associated to the absence of this milk supplementation program. The expected infant mortality rates and health care costs that would follow suggest that the milk supplementation program saves about $10 per infant.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

When does mass screening for open neural tube defects in low-risk pregnancies result in cost savings?

Using a decision analysis model, we estimated the savings that might be derived from a mass prenatal screening program aimed at detecting open neural tube defects (NTDs) in low-risk pregnancies. Our baseline analysis showed that screening v. no screening could be expected to save approximately $8 per pregnancy given a cost of $7.50 for the maternal serum alpha-feto-protein (MSAFP) test and a cost of $42,507 for hospital and rehabilitation services for the first 10 years of life for a child with spina bifida. When a more liberal estimate of the costs of caring for such a child was used, the savings with the screening program were more substantial. We performed extensive sensitivity analyses, which showed that the savings were somewhat sensitive to the cost of the MSAFP test and highly sensitive to the specificity (but not the sensitivity) of the test. A screening program for NTDs in low-risk pregnancies may result in substantial savings in direct health care costs if the screening protocol is followed rigorously and efficiently.

Computer Simulation↗
PubMed1989

The cost effectiveness of prenatal care in reducing low birth weight in New Hampshire.

This study calculates the cost effectiveness of adequate prenatal care in reducing the low birth weight rate for each of three socioeconomic groups of women: those with less than 12 years of education, those with 12 years, and those with more than 12 years. Target low birth weight rates for each group were those actually achieved by New Hampshire women receiving adequate prenatal care within respective education groups. The estimated total cost associated with low birth weight births among the 1981-1984 cohort of New Hampshire resident births was more than $38 million. With universal adequate prenatal care, the low birth weight costs would be less than $32 million, a cost savings of $6.5 million. Since the additional cost of providing adequate prenatal care to all women was estimated to be $2.5 million, the net cost savings were estimated to be $4 million, or $1 million per year. For each additional $1 spent on prenatal care, $2.57 in medical care costs would be saved.

Adult↗