Over the past decade, prescription drug costs have risen rapidly and an increasing
number of demographic groups, including many older Americans, are unable to afford
their medications. This aging population, especially those with other risk factors,
are at risk for medication non-adherence due to the inability to afford prescriptions
[
1
,
2
,
3
]. Prior work has shown that cost-related noncompliance is common among the general
population of emergency department users. In one study, 25% of emergency department
(ED) patients reported cost-related barriers or concerns related to obtaining medications
[
[4]
]. Additionally, Blanchard et al. found an association between severe cost-related
noncompliance and ED utilization among a population of Medicare beneficiaries [
[5]
]. This study aims to identify characteristics of elderly patients in an urban academic
ED who are unable to pay for prescription medication and target strategies employed
by ED social workers to help patients cope with rising out-of-pocket expenses.Keywords
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References
- Risk for cost-related medication non-adherence among emergency department patients.Acad Emerg Med. 2011; 18: 267-272
- A systematic review of barriers to medication adherence in the elderly: looking beyond cost and regimen complexity.Am J Geriatr Pharmacother. 2011; 9: 11-23
- Definitions, variants, and causes of nonadherence with medication: a challenge for tailored interventions.Patient Prefer Adherence. 2013; 7: 675-682
- The role of Medicare for people dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid.Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Jan, 2011 ([Accessed October 19, 2018]. Issue Brief)
- The relationship between emergency department use and cost-related medication nonadherence among Medicare beneficiaries.Ann Emerg Med. 2013; 62: 475-485
Article Info
Publication History
Published online: October 25, 2018
Accepted:
October 25,
2018
Received:
October 24,
2018
Identification
Copyright
© 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
