Older Adults' Use of Health Maintenance Organizations

Abstract

The effects of Health Maintenance Organization membership on the use of physicians and hospitals. by older adults was examined using data from the 1975 National Health Interview Survey. Comparison of the HMO and non-H MO groups revealed that the HMO members differed on several demographic variables. While the HMO members tended to have more frequent physicians' visits than the nonmembers, the two groups did not differ in their number of hospitalized days or hospital episodes. In both populations, use of physician's services was most strongly influenced by poor health, although the effects were stronger in the HMO than the non-HMO group, indicating the physicians' services were more accessible by older adults in HMOs than in fee-for-service systems. Hospital utilization was affected equally strongly by poor health in both groups.