Dive Brief:
- While evidence indicates cardiac rehab programs significantly reduce a patient's risk of death from another cardiac problem, as well as improve their quality of life and reduce healthcare costs, not even a third of those who qualify actually participate in rehab.
- The time might be ripe, however, for cardiac rehab to get more attention now that hospitals will have a stake in whether cardiac patients are readmitted, suggested Kaiser Health News.
- Participation in cardiac rehab has been shown to reduce hospital readmissions by almost a third, according to studies quoted by KHN and the American Heart Association.
Dive Insight:
The issue so far has been that barriers, including cost, have stood in the way of participation.
The price tag is too steep for uninsured patients, but even the co-pay is still too high for many with Medicare or private insurance, KHN reported, noting coverage is generally for two to three visits per week for up to 36 sessions. For Medicare enrollees the co-pay is about $20 per session, and for those with Medicare Advantage or other private insurance, the cost can be more than $60 per session.
Other issues that stand in the way of participation include a lack of referrals to programs, which some hospitals are addressing by automating referrals during discharge, KHN reported. In addition, some patients are reluctant to participate because they have been physically inactive, face time constraints, face scheduling constraints due to rehab being offered during working hours, or face travel constraints in reaching distant programs.
And even if most eligible patients did try to take advantage of cardiac rehab, the currently available programs would not be able to accommodate 100% of them, or even close--but more like 47%.