Medicaid-Financed Nursing Home Services: Characteristics of People Served and Their Patterns of Care, 2001-2002

摘要

This study capitalizes on the enrollment and claims-level information in MAX to characterize people starting new spells of nursing home use, examine how they became eligible for Medicaid nursing home services, and summarize the number and duration of their spells. We examine Medicaid eligibility codes prior to nursing home spells to distinguish new enrollees from persons who were already enrolled in Medicaid at the start of their spell. By comparing the first Medicaid payment date with the nursing home admission date, we are able to distinguish those who may have spent down their assets to become Medicaid eligible from those who were on Medicaid when they were admitted.