Indicator Gauge Icon Legend
Legend Colors
Red is bad, green is good, blue is not statistically different/neutral.
Compared to Distribution
the value is in the best half of communities.
the value is in the 2nd worst quarter of communities.
the value is in the worst quarter of communities.
Compared to Target
meets target; 
does not meet target.
Compared to a Single Value
lower than the comparison value;
higher than the comparison value;
not statistically different from comparison value.
Trend
non-significant change over time; 
significant change over time; 
no change over time.
Compared to Prior Value
higher than the previous measurement period;
lower than the previous measurement period;
no statistically different change from previous measurement period.
Significantly better than the overall value
Significantly worse than the overall value
No significant difference with the overall value
No data on significance available
High-Risk Medication Use Among Medicare Older Adults
Select a Hospital Referral Region
Measurement Period: 2012
This indicator is archived and is no longer being updated. Click to learn more
This indicator shows the percentage of Medicare beneficiaries filling a prescription for a high-risk medication.
High-risk medications are those identified on the Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) list by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as generally conferring more risk than benefit in older people.
Why is this important?
Certain medications can cause or be associated with harm, especially in the elderly population. There is clinical consensus that high-risk medications increase the risk of harm from side-effects and toxicity. These types of medications should be avoided by older adults if possible.
Appropriate use of prescription drugs in the elderly, including proper drug selection, has been identified as an important quality of care issue, and explicit criteria defining inappropriate drug use is an important tool in the evaluation of prescribing to populations. Studies link prescription drug use by the elderly with adverse drug events that contribute to hospitalization, increased length of hospital stay, increased duration of illness, nursing home placement, and falls and fractures that are further associated with physical, functional, and social decline in the elderly.
Reducing prescriptions of high-risk drugs in the elderly also represents an opportunity to reduce the costs associated with harm from medications and to encourage clinicians to consider safer, alternative medications. Reducing unnecessary prescribing will also help to reduce cost, given that the elderly population represents one-third of all prescription drug expenditures in the U.S.
| Hospital Referral Region | Source | Measurement Period | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Data Source
- The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care
Maintained By: Conduent Healthy Communities Institute (Methodology)
Filed under: Health / Older Adults, Clinical Care, Adults, Older Adults, People with Disabilities