Physician responses to insurance benefit restrictions: The case of ophthalmology.

This study examines the impact of social insurance benefit restrictions on physician behaviour, using ophthalmologists as a case study. We examine whether ophthalmologists use their market power to alter their fees and rebates across services to compensate for potential policy-induced income losses. The results show that ophthalmologists substantially reduced their fees and rebates for services directly targeted by the benefit restriction compared to other medical specialists' fees and rebates.

A methodology for identifying high-need, high-cost patient personas for international comparisons.

Objective: To establish a methodological approach to compare two high-need, high-cost (HNHC) patient personas internationally.

Data Sources: Linked individual-level administrative data from the inpatient and outpatient sectors compiled by the International Collaborative on Costs, Outcomes, and Needs in Care (ICCONIC) across 11 countries: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States.

Study Design: We outline a methodological approach to identify HNHC patient types for international comparisons that reflect complex, priority populations defined by the National Academy of Medicine.

International comparison of spending and utilization at the end of life for hip fracture patients.

Objective: To identify and explore differences in spending and utilization of key health services at the end of life among hip fracture patients across seven developed countries.

Data Sources: Individual-level claims data from the inpatient and outpatient health care sectors compiled by the International Collaborative on Costs, Outcomes, and Needs in Care (ICCONIC).

Study Design: We retrospectively analyzed utilization and spending from acute hospital care, emergency department, outpatient primary care and specialty physician visits, and outpatient drugs.

Within and across country variations in treatment of patients with heart failure and diabetes.

Objective: To compare within-country variation of health care utilization and spending of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) and diabetes across countries.

Data Sources: Patient-level linked data sources compiled by the International Collaborative on Costs, Outcomes, and Needs in Care across nine countries: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States.

Data Collection Methods: Patients were identified in routine hospital data with a primary diagnosis of CHF and a secondary diagnosis of diabetes in 2015/2016.

Differences in health care spending and utilization among older frail adults in high-income countries: ICCONIC hip fracture persona.

Objective: This study explores differences in spending and utilization of health care services for an older person with frailty before and after a hip fracture.

Data Sources: We used individual-level patient data from five care settings.

Study Design: We compared utilization and spending of an older person aged older than 65 years for 365 days before and after a hip fracture across 11 countries and five domains of care as follows: acute hospital care, primary care, outpatient specialty care, post-acute rehabilitative care, and outpatient drugs.

Differences in health outcomes for high-need high-cost patients across high-income countries.

Objective: This study explores variations in outcomes of care for two types of patient personas-an older frail person recovering from a hip fracture and a multimorbid older patient with congestive heart failure (CHF) and diabetes.

Data Sources: We used individual-level patient data from 11 health systems.

Study Design: We compared inpatient mortality, mortality, and readmission rates at 30, 90, and 365 days.

International comparison of health spending and utilization among people with complex multimorbidity.

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore cross-country differences in spending and utilization across different domains of care for a multimorbid persona with heart failure and diabetes.

Data Sources: We used individual-level administrative claims or registry data from inpatient and outpatient health care sectors compiled by the International Collaborative on Costs, Outcomes, and Needs in Care (ICCONIC) across 11 countries: Australia, Canada, England, France, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States (US).

Data Collection/extraction Methods: Data collected by ICCONIC partners.

Accommodation payment plans in residential aged care: The impact of consumer choice.

Objective: To examine changes in accommodation payments to residential aged care facilities following the introduction of consumer choice reforms in 2014. These reforms have allowed residents to choose between making lump sum refundable deposits and/or rental-style payments.

Methods: Quantitative analysis was undertaken for facility-level quarterly data of 136 separate facilities, which were operated by six providers over the period under study.

The Impact of Unanticipated Economic Shocks on the Demand for Contraceptives: Evidence from Uganda.

We investigate the impact of unanticipated economic shocks on the use of contraceptives for childbirth control in Uganda using a nationally representative panel of women. To complement our reduced form analysis, we use both intra-village and inter-village variation in rainfall shocks between 2009 and 2012 to identify the impact of agricultural income on the adoption of contraceptives by Ugandan women and their husbands. Our results indicate that women in Uganda, along with their husbands, use contraceptives strategically to postpone childbirth during negative shocks.