The Contribution of First-name Information to the Accuracy of Racial-and-Ethnic Imputations Varies by Sex and Race-and-Ethnicity Among Medicare Beneficiaries.

Background: Data on race-and-ethnicity that are needed to measure health equity are often limited or missing. The importance of first name and sex in predicting race-and-ethnicity is not well understood.

Objective: The objective of this study was to compare the contribution of first-name information to the accuracy of basic and more complex racial-and-ethnic imputations that incorporate surname information.

The Effect of Hospice on End-of-Life Costs for Terminal Medicare Patients With HIV.

One-quarter of annual Medicare expenses in the traditional program (non-Medicare Advantage) are expended for 5% of Medicare enrollees, with much of this expenditure occurring in the last year of life. Hospice use may reduce end-of-life costs. However, evidence has been inconclusive due to sample selection and differences in insurance coverage for hospice.

Engaging Latino Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Cancer Survivors in Their Care: Piloting a Photonovela Intervention.

Latino adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer survivors represent a growing population given the changing demographics in the USA. They experience significant healthcare disparities and barriers that warrant age-specific and culturally appropriate interventions to improve their clinical and psychosocial outcomes. This single-arm pilot study evaluated a novel intervention - a photonovela - on its ability to educate Latino AYA survivors and their family members and engage them in survivorship care.

Association between Federally Qualified Health Center usage and emergency department utilization among California's HIV-infected Medicaid beneficiaries, 2009.

Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) have long been important sources of care for publicly insured people living with HIV. FQHC users have historically used emergency departments (EDs) at a higher-than-average rate. This paper examines whether this greater use relates to access difficulties in FQHCs or to characteristics of FQHC users.

Acceptability of Injectable and On-Demand Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Among an Online Sample of Young Men Who Have Sex with Men in California.

Purpose: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective strategy to prevent HIV. However, low uptake of daily oral PrEP since Food and Drug Administration approval and low medication adherence among users have stimulated the investigation of other modalities for delivery, such as injectable PrEP and on-demand PrEP. The objective of this study was to determine the demographic and behavioral predictors of willingness to try alternative PrEP delivery mechanisms among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) who stated that they were unwilling to try daily oral PrEP.

The cost of comorbidities in treatment for HIV/AIDS in California.

Background: Antiretroviral therapy has increased longevity for people living with HIV (PLWH). As a result, PLWH increasingly experience the common diseases of aging and the resources needed to manage these comorbidities are increasing. This paper characterizes the number and types of comorbidities diagnosed among PLWH covered by Medicare and examines how non-HIV comorbidities relate to outpatient, inpatient, and pharmaceutical expenditures.

Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing of HIV-Positive Medicare and Medicaid Enrollees Falls Short of Guidelines.

Background: Men who have sex with men with HIV have high sexually transmitted infection (STI) incidence. Thus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends at least yearly STI screening of HIV-infected individuals.

Methods: We calculated testing rates for syphilis, chlamydia, and gonorrhea among HIV-positive Californians with Medicare or Medicaid insurance in 2010.

Facilitators and Barriers to Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Willingness Among Young Men Who Have Sex with Men Who Use Geosocial Networking Applications in California.

While correlates of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uptake have been explored among older men who have sex with men (MSM), less is known about the facilitators and barriers that encourage uptake among younger MSM (YMSM). This study explores the association between willingness to take PrEP and demographic characteristics, sexual risk, and substance use, and attitudinal factors among YMSM in California who use geosocial networking applications (GSN apps). Based on survey data from YMSM recruited through GSN apps (n = 687), PrEP willingness was positively associated with Hispanic ethnicity [adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 1.

Transitioning From Medicaid Disability Coverage to Long-Term Medicare Coverage: The Case of People Living With HIV/AIDS in California.

Medicaid can serve as a bridge to Medicare coverage for the long-term disabled with sufficient covered work experience. We perform multinomial logistic regression on 2007-2010 Medicare and Medicaid claims data to examine transitions to Medicare for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in California who had Medicaid coverage in 2007. We find only 16% had obtained Medicare coverage by 2010.

Quality of Care for HIV/AIDS and for Primary Prevention by HIV Specialists and Nonspecialists.

The role of HIV specialists in providing primary care to persons living with HIV/AIDS is evolving, given their increased incidence of comorbidities. Multivariate logit analysis compared compliance with sentinel preventive screening tests and interventions among publicly insured Californians with and without access to HIV specialists in 2010. Quality-of-care indicators [visit frequency, CD4 and viral load (VL) assessments, influenza vaccine, tuberculosis (TB) testing, lipid profile, glucose blood test, and Pap smears for women] were related to patient characteristics and provider HIV caseload.