Rural-urban differences in health insurance coverage and patterns among working-age adults in Kentucky.

Context: Past studies show that rural populations are less likely than urban populations to have health insurance coverage, which may severely limit their access to needed health services.

Purpose: To examine rural-urban differences in various aspects of health insurance coverage among working-age adults in Kentucky.

Methods: Data are from a household survey conducted in Kentucky in 2005.

Where do I send thee? Does physician-ownership affect referral patterns to ambulatory surgery centers?

For more than three decades, Congress has struggled with potential financial conflicts of interest when physicians share in financial gain from nonprofessional services. This study asks the question: Are physicians who are leading referrers to physician-owned ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) more likely to send Medicaid patients to hospital outpatient clinics than other patients? The comparison group is physicians who are leading referrers to non-physician-owned ASCs, using data from two metropolitan areas. Findings indicate that physicians at physician-owned facilities are more likely than other physicians to refer well-insured patients to their facilities and route Medicaid patients to hospital outpatient clinics.

The effect of HMO penetration on physician retirement.

Objective: To examine the effect of HMO penetration on physician retirement.

Study Design: We linked together historical data from the Physician Masterfile of the American Medical Association for successive years to track changes in physicians' activity status between 1980 and 1997. We used a multivariate discrete-time survival model to examine how the probability of physician retirement was affected by the level of HMO penetration in the physician's market area, controlling for other physician and market characteristics.