Research Article

Is There Extra Cost of Institutional Care for MS Patients?

Table 1

Characteristics of SNF facilities with high versus low MS volumes.
(a)

SNF characteristicsFacility MS volume
Low (<3%)High (>3%)
Number (%)Number (%)

All
12,508 (92%)1,148 (8%)
Region<0.0001
 Northeast2,385 (19%)208 (18%)
 Midwest3,695 (30%)465 (41%)
 South4,679 (37%)146 (13%)
 West1,749 (14%)329 (28%)
Type of ownership<0.0001
 For profit 9,564 (76%)840 (73%)
 Not for profit2,546 (20%)229 (20%)
 Governmental398 (4%)79 (7%)

(b)

Mean (std. dev.)Mean (std. dev.)

Cost per day217 (107)213 (89)0.110
Inpatient days36,556 (21)33,204 (21)<0.0001
Admissions239 (218)197 (162)<0.0001
Case-mix index 0.939 (0.10)0.926 (0.08)<0.0001

MS: multiple sclerosis; SNF: skilled nursing facility; : value; std. dev.: standard deviation.
MS volume is defined as the annual percentage of patients-days attributed to multiple sclerosis.