Effects of a Specialized Primary Care Facility on Preventive Service Use Among Autistic Adults: a Retrospective Claims Study.

Background: While in some studies, the patient-centered medical home has been linked with increased receipt of preventive services among other populations, there is a paucity of literature testing the effectiveness of medical homes in serving the healthcare needs of autistic adults.

Objective: To compare the receipt of preventive services by patients at a patient-centered medical home specifically designed for autistic adults (called the Center for Autism Services and Transition "CAST") to US national samples of autistic adults with private insurance or Medicare.

Design: Retrospective study of medical billing data.

Sample: The study sample included CAST patients (N = 490) who were propensity score matched to Medicare-enrolled autistic adults (N = 980) and privately insured autistic adults (N = 980) using demographic characteristics. The median age of subjects was 21 years old, 79% were male, and the median duration of observation was 2.2 years.

Main Measures: The primary outcome measure was the receipt of any preventive service, as defined by the Medicare Learning Network and AAPC (formerly the American Academy of Professional Coders). Secondary outcome measures included receipt of specific preventive service types (i.e., general health and wellness services, screenings, counseling and therapies, vaccinations, and sexual/reproductive health services).

Key Results: CAST patients had significantly greater odds of receiving any preventive service than Medicare-enrolled (OR = 10.3; 95% CI = 7.6-13.9) and privately insured (OR = 3.1; 95% CI = 2.3-4.2) autistic adults. CAST patients were also significantly more likely to receive screenings and vaccinations than either Medicare beneficiaries (screenings OR = 20.3; 95% CI = 14.7-28.0; vaccinations OR = 5.5; 95% CI = 4.3-7.0) or privately insured beneficiaries (screenings OR = 2.0; 95% CI = 1.6-2.5; vaccinations OR = 3.3; 95% CI = 2.6-4.1).

Conclusions: Autistic adults receiving care through CAST were significantly more likely to recieve preventive care services than national samples of autistic adults. Future comparative effectiveness trials are needed to rigorously assess the impact of primary care-based initiatives to improve care for autistic adults.