Child Asthma Link Line: Outcomes from a Medicaid Managed Care Organization Matched Sample Study

Measurable objective: To assess the success of a telephone-based, service integration model to improve asthma management.

Background: The Philadelphia Allies Against Asthma Coalition developed and implemented the Child Asthma Link Line, a telephone-based, care coordination and system integration program, which has been in operation since 2002.

Purpose: This study evaluates the effectiveness of the Child Asthma Link Line integration model to improve asthma management by comparing a group of children with asthma whose families received the Link Line intervention services with a matched sample of children whose families did not receive the Link Line intervention.

Significance: Integrated system level interventions for support services and care can impact childhood asthma.

Methodology: Data used in the analysis are Medicaid Managed Care Organization (MMCO) claims for 59 Link Line intervention group children and a matched sample of 236 children who did not receive intervention. Children in the two study groups are ages 3 through 12 years and matched on 2003 emergency department (ED) visits, age, gender and race/ethnicity. Primary outcome variables analyzed in this study are ED and hospitalization claims.

Findings: Link Line intervention children are significantly less likely to have follow-up hospitalizations than Matched Sample children (p=.02). In addition, Link Line children with multiple ED visits in 2003 are significantly less likely to have an ED visit in 2004 (p=.046).

Conclusions: Telephone-based service integration may be a viable and economic way to reduce emergency department use and hospitalizations.