This cohort study evaluates whether inequities in race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status exist in sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor use among US patients with type 2 diabetes.

IMPORTANCE Current guidelines recommend prasugrel hydrochloride and ticagrelor hydrochloride as preferred therapies for patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, it is not well known how frequently these newer agents are being used in clinical practice or how adherence varies among the platelet adenosine diphosphate P2Y 12 receptor (P2Y 12) inhibitors. OBJECTIVES To determine trends in use of the different P2Y 12 inhibitors in patients who underwent PCI from 2008 to 2016 in a large cohort of commercially insured patients and differences in patient adherence and costs among the P2Y 12 inhibitors. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS A retrospective cohort study used administrative claims from a large US national insurer (ie, UnitedHealthcare) from January 1, 2008, to December 1, 2016, comprising patients aged 18 to 64 years hospitalized for PCI who had not received a P2Y 12 inhibitor for 90 days preceding PCI. The P2Y 12 inhibitor filled within 30 days of discharge was identified from pharmacy claims. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Proportion of patients filling prescriptions for P2Y 12 inhibitors within 30 days of discharge by year, as well as medication possession ratios (MPRs) and total P2Y 12 inhibitor copayments at 6 and 12 months for patients who received drug-eluting stents. RESULTS A total of 55 340 patients (12 754 [23.0%] women; mean [SD] age, 54.4 [7.1] years) who underwent PCI were included in this study. In 2008, 7667 (93.6%) patients filled a prescription for clopidogrel bisulfate and 521 (6.4%) filled no P2Y 12 inhibitor prescription within 30 days of hospitalization. In 2016, 2406 (44.0%) patients filled clopidogrel prescriptions, 2015 (36.9%) filled either prasugrel or ticagrelor prescriptions, and 1045 (19.1%) patients filled no P2Y 12 inhibitor prescription within 30 days of hospitalization. At 6 months, mean MPRs for patients who received a drug-eluting stent filling clopidogrel, prasugrel, and ticagrelor prescriptions were 0.85 (interquartile range [IQR], 0.82-1.00), 0.79

IMPORTANCE Randomized clinical trials have shown that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) cause significant weight loss and reduce cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Black patients have a disproportionate burden of obesity and cardiovascular disease and have a higher rate of cardiovascular-related mortality. Racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes are largely attributable to the pervasiveness of structural racism, and patients who are marginalized by racism have less access to novel therapeutics.OBJECTIVES To evaluate GLP-1 RA uptake among a commercially insured population of patients with T2D; identify associations of race, ethnicity, sex, and socioeconomic status with GLP-1 RA use; and specifically examine its use among the subgroup of patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) because of the known benefit of GLP-1 RA use for this population. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This was a retrospective cohort analysis using data fromOptumInsight Clinformatics Data Mart of commercially insured adult patients with T2D (with or without ASCVD) in the US. Data from October 1, 2015, to June 31, 2019, were included, and the analyses were performed in July 2020. We estimated multivariable logistic regression models to identify the association of race, ethnicity, sex, and socioeconomic status with GLP-1 RA use. MAIN OUTCOME AND MEASUREA prescription for a GLP-1 RA. RESULTSOf the 1 180 260 patients with T2D (median [IQR] age,[69][70][71][72][73][74][75][76] years; 50.3% female; 57.7% White), 90 934 (7.7%) were treated with GLP-1 RA during the study period. From 2015 to 2019, the percentage of T2D patients treated with an GLP-1 RA increased from 3.2% to 10.7%. Among patients with T2D and ASCVD, use also increased but remained low (2.8%-9.4%). In multivariable analyses, lower rates of GLP-1 RA use were found among Asian (aOR, 0.59; 95% CI, 0.56-0.62), Black

Background: Beginning in 2012, direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) were approved for treatment and prevention of venous thromboembolism. Prior investigations have demonstrated slow rates of adoption of novel therapeutics for black patients. We assessed the association of racial/ethnic and socioeconomic factors with DOAC use among commercially insured venous thromboembolism patients. Methods and Results: We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of adult patients with an incident diagnosis of venous thromboembolism between January 2010 and December 2016 using OptumInsight’s Clinformatics Data Mart. We identified the first filled oral anticoagulant prescription within 30 days of discharge of an inpatient admission. We performed a multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, region, zip code–linked household income, and clinical covariates to identify factors associated with the use of DOACs. Race and ethnicity were determined in this database through a combination of public records, self-report, and proprietary ethnicity code tables. There were 14 140 patients included in the analysis. Treatment with DOACs increased from <0.1% in 2010 to 65.6% in 2016. In multivariable analyses, black patients were less likely to receive a DOAC compared with white patients (odds ratio, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.77–0.97; P =0.02). There were no differences in DOAC utilization among Asian (odds ratio, 1.06; 95% CI, 0.75–1.49; P =0.74) or Hispanic patients (odds ratio, 1.04; 95% CI, 0.88–1.22; P =0.66) compared with whites. Patients with a household income over $100 000 per year were more likely to receive DOAC therapy compared with patients with a household income of <$40 000 per year (odds ratio, 1.50; 95% CI, 1.33–1.69; P <0.0001). Conclusions: Although DOAC adoption has increased steadily since 2012, among a commercially insured population, black race and low household income were associated with lower use of DOACs for incident venous thromboembolism despite controlling for other clinical and socioeconomic factors. These findings suggest the possibility of both racial and socioeconomic inequity in access to this novel pharmacotherapy.

IMPORTANCEDespite the benefits of high-technology therapeutics, inequitable access to these technologies may generate disparities in care.OBJECTIVE To examine the association between zip code-level racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic composition and rates of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) among Medicare patients living within large metropolitan areas with TAVR programs. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis multicenter, nationwide cross-sectional analysis of Medicare claims data between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2018, included beneficiaries of fee-for-service Medicare who were 66 years or older living in the 25 largest metropolitan core-based statistical areas.EXPOSURE Receipt of TAVR. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe association between zip code-level racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic composition and rates of TAVR per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries.RESULTS Within the studied metropolitan areas, there were 7590 individual zip codes. The mean (SD) age of Medicare beneficiaries within these areas was 71.4 (2.0) years, a mean (SD) of 47.6% (5.8%) of beneficiaries were men, and a mean (SD) of 4.0% (7.0%) were Asian, 11.1% (18.9%) were Black, 8.0% (12.9%) were Hispanic, and 73.8% (24.9%) were White. The mean number of TAVRs per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries by zip code was 249 (IQR, 0-429). For each $1000 decrease in median household income, the number of TAVR procedures performed per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries was 0.2% (95% CI, 0.1%-0.4%) lower (P = .002). For each 1% increase in the proportion of patients who were dually eligible for Medicaid services, the number of TAVR procedures performed per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries was 2.1% (95% CI, 1.3%-2.9%) lower (P < .001). For each 1-unit increase in the Distressed Communities Index score, the number of TAVR procedures performed per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries was 0.4% (95% CI, 0.2%-0.5%) lower (P < .001). Rates of TAVR were lower in zip codes with higher proportions of patients of Black race and Hispanic ethnicity, despite adjusting for socioeconomic markers, age, and clinical comorbidities.CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Within major metropolitan areas in the US with TAVR programs, zip codes with higher proportions of Black and Hispanic patients and those with greater socioeconomic disadvantages had lower rates of TAVR, adjusting for age and clinical comorbidities. Whether this reflects a different burden of symptomatic aortic stenosis by race and socioeconomic status or disparities in use of TAVR requires further study.

Background: Despite the benefits of novel therapeutics, inequitable diffusion of new technologies may generate disparities. We examined the growth of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in the United States to understand the characteristics of hospitals that developed TAVR programs and the socioeconomic status of patients these hospitals served. Methods: We identified fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries aged 66 years or older who underwent TAVR between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2018, and hospitals that developed TAVR programs (defined as performing ≥10 TAVRs over the study period). We used linear regression models to compare socioeconomic characteristics of patients treated at hospitals that did and did not establish TAVR programs and described the association between core-based statistical area level markers of socioeconomic status and TAVR rates. Results: Between 2012 and 2018, 583 hospitals developed new TAVR programs, including 572 (98.1%) in metropolitan areas, and 293 (50.3%) in metropolitan areas with preexisting TAVR programs. Compared with hospitals that did not start TAVR programs, hospitals that did start TAVR programs treated fewer patients with dual eligibility for Medicaid (difference of −2.83% [95% CI, −3.78% to −1.89%], P ≤0.01), higher median household incomes (difference $2447 [95% CI, $1348–$3547], P =0.03), and from areas with lower distressed communities index scores (difference −4.02 units [95% CI, −5.43 to −2.61], P ≤0.01). After adjusting for the age, clinical comorbidities, race and ethnicity and socioeconomic status, areas with TAVR programs had higher rates of TAVR and TAVR rates per 100 000 Medicare beneficiaries were higher in core-based statistical areas with fewer dual eligible patients, higher median income, and lower distressed communities index scores. Conclusions: During the initial growth phase of TAVR programs in the United States, hospitals serving wealthier patients were more likely to start programs. This pattern of growth has led to inequities in the dispersion of TAVR, with lower rates in poorer communities.

Although health professionals may be assumed to make healthier lifestyle choices and have better health outcomes than others due to greater health literacy, little is known about how actual health outcomes of health professionals compare to the overall population. We analyzed how trends in obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and coronary artery disease prevalence as well as several health behaviors (smoking, alcohol use, and exercise) varied between health professionals and the general U.S. population from 2002 to 2013, using nationally representative data collected by the National Health Interview Survey. We estimated multivariable logistic regressions of each disease and behavior adjusted for age, race, sex, geographic region, and year. Although rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension were lower among health professionals compared to the overall population, disease was still common among health professionals and increased at a similar rate over time compared to the overall population. For example, obesity prevalence was lower among health professionals but increased similarly from 2002 to 2013 (health professionals, 20.5% in 2002 to 22.1% in 2013; other occupations, 28.4% to 31.7%; P=.64 for difference in trend). Diabetes prevalence was modestly lower among health professionals but increased at a similar trend (health professionals, 7.4% in 2005 to 8.6% in 2013; other occupations, 8.7% to 9.9%; P=.67 for difference in trend). Similar patterns were noted in hypertension. Coronary artery disease prevalence declined over time among health professionals but increased for others. Health professionals reported better health behaviors than others in smoking and physical activity, but not in moderate-to-heavy alcohol use.

IMPORTANCE After a decline in cardiovascular mortality for nonelderly US adults, recent stagnation has occurred alongside rising income inequality. Whether this is associated with underlying economic trends is unclear.OBJECTIVE To assess the association between changes in economic prosperity and trends in cardiovascular mortality in middle-aged US adults. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSRetrospective analysis of the association between change in 7 markers of economic prosperity in 3123 US counties and county-level cardiovascular mortality among 40-to 64-year-old adults (102 660 852 individuals in 2010).EXPOSURES Mean rank for change in 7 markers of economic prosperity between 2 time periods (baseline: 2007-2011 and follow-up: 2012-2016). A higher mean rank indicates a greater relative increase or lower relative decrease in prosperity (range, 5 to 92; mean [SD], 50 [14]). MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESMean annual percentage change (APC) in age-adjusted cardiovascular mortality rates. Generalized linear mixed-effects models were used to estimate the additional APC associated with a change in prosperity. RESULTS Among 102 660 852 residents aged 40 to 64 years living in these counties in 2010 (51% women), 979 228 cardiovascular deaths occurred between 2010 and 2017. Age-adjusted cardiovascular mortality rates did not change significantly between 2010 and 2017 in counties in the lowest tertile for change in economic prosperity (mean [SD], 114.1 [47.9] to 116.1 [52.7] deaths per 100 000 individuals; APC, 0.2% [95% CI, −0.3% to 0.7%]). Mortality decreased significantly in the intermediate tertile (mean [SD], 104.7 [38.8] to 101.9 [41.5] deaths per 100 000 individuals; APC, −0.4% [95% CI, −0.8% to −0.1%]) and highest tertile for change in prosperity (100.0 [37.9] to 95.1 [39.1] deaths per 100 000 individuals; APC, −0.5% [95% CI, −0.9% to −0.1%]). After accounting for baseline prosperity and demographic and health care-related variables, a 10-point higher mean rank for change in economic prosperity was associated with 0.4% (95% CI, 0.2% to 0.6%) additional decrease in mortality per year. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEIn this retrospective study of US county-level mortality data from 2010 to 2017, a relative increase in county-level economic prosperity was significantly associated with a small relative decrease in cardiovascular mortality among middle-aged adults. Individual-level inferences are limited by the ecological nature of the study.