Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Referral Rejection from Postacute Care Facilities among People with Opioid Use Disorder in Massachusetts.

J Addict Med

From the Section of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA (SR, ML, ZW, KS-A, SY, AYW, SDK); Department of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA (SR); The Grayken Center for Addiction, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA (ML, ZW, AYW, SDK); Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA (BB); Department of Health Services, Policy and Practice, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI (PM); and Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA (SDK).

Published: November 2024

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study aimed to explore how race and ethnicity (Black, White, Hispanic/Latino) relate to the rejection of referrals from private postacute care facilities for hospitalized individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD).
  • Researchers utilized electronic records from Boston Medical Center to analyze data from 159 hospitalizations, finding that non-Hispanic Black individuals faced significantly higher odds of referral rejection compared to non-Hispanic White individuals (1.83 times more likely).
  • The study concludes that racial discrimination is evident in postacute care admissions for OUD, highlighting the need for initiatives to improve racial equity in healthcare access.

Article Abstract

Objectives: The aim of the study was to examine the association between Black, White, and Hispanic or Latino race and ethnicity and referral rejection from private postacute care facilities among hospitalized individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD).

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we linked electronic postacute care referrals from Boston Medical Center in 2018 to electronic medical record data, which we used to ascertain OUD status and race and ethnicity. Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined the association between Black, White, and Hispanic or Latino race and ethnicity and referral rejection, adjusting for individual-level characteristics including medication for opioid use disorder treatment type and for facility-level factors using facility random effects.

Results: We identified 159 hospitalizations from 141 individuals with OUD referred to private postacute medical care, corresponding to 1272 referrals to 244 facilities. Hospitalizations comprised 53 (33%) non-Hispanic Black, 28 (18%) Hispanic or Latino, and 78 (49%) non-Hispanic White individuals. In adjusted analyses, referrals for non-Hispanic Black individuals had significantly higher odds of rejection compared to referrals for non-Hispanic White individuals (adjusted odds ratio 1.83, 95% confidence interval [1.24, 2.69], P = 0.002). There were no significant differences between referrals for Hispanic or Latino individuals and non-Hispanic White individuals (adjusted odds ratio 1.11, 95% confidence interval [0.67, 1.84], P = 0.69).

Conclusions: Among people with OUD referred to private postacute care in Massachusetts, non-Hispanic Black individuals were more likely to be rejected compared to non-Hispanic White individuals, demonstrating racism in postacute care admissions. Efforts to address discrimination against people with OUD in postacute care admissions must also address racial equity.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/ADM.0000000000001390DOI Listing

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