Severe lead poisoning: Payers and practice patterns

Previous studies have shown that severe lead poisoning still occurs in the United States. This study expands on these existing findings and examines two specific aims. The first aim was to derive who pays for treatment of severe lead poisoning. The second aim was to characterize how patients were treated. This research analyzed all inpatient admissions of 11 states over a five year period. This research collected case information from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP), under specific case definition. Trends in insurance payment, practice patterns, source of admission and supporting health system information were derived using descriptive statistical and chi square analyses. Results indicate that Medicaid and private insurers pay for the majority of treatment. Detailed analyses show that the two major payers compliment one another; when one decreases benefits, the other absorbs the difference. Treatment patterns vary, spanning from multi-day observation to bone scans. Severe lead poisoning cases caught via routine admissions and screening makes up the majority of cases and continues to decline; however, emergency department admissions have not. Both sources of admission exhibit specific demographic profiles.