Medicare Patients From Racial/Ethnic Minority Groups Have Inadequate Access to MDPP

The Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) is not accessible enough to meet potential demand, particularly for beneficiaries from racial and ethnic minority groups, according to a research letter published online in JAMA Network Open.

“The disproportionate burden of obesity and type 2 diabetes on racial and ethnic minority communities signals an urgent need to accelerate the implementation and coordination of the MDPP,” researchers wrote.

Launched in 2018, the MDPP is a structured behavior change program for Medicare beneficiaries at risk of diabetes or with prediabetes. The study looked at access to the MDPP by state as well as by race and ethnicity.

As of March 2021, 244 unique suppliers offered the MDPP at a total 940 sites throughout the United States. Across all Medicare beneficiaries, there were 1.5 sites offering the MDPP for every 100,000 beneficiaries. Connecticut, New Mexico, and Washington DC had only 1 site for 640,932 beneficiaries, researchers reported.

African American, Hispanic, and Latinx beneficiaries per site differed significantly, according to the analysis. With the exception of Maryland, which had 30 sites, MDPP sites ranged from 1 to 3 in states with an African American Medicare beneficiary population of 20% or more (Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, and Washington DC). New Mexico, which has a Hispanic/Latinx Medicare beneficiary population of 20% or more, had just 1 MDPP site.

“There is an urgent need to increase the availability and uptake of MDPP by expanding types of suppliers and encouraging innovations in service delivery, especially for those living in resource-poor areas,” researchers advised.

Reference:
Yan A, Chen Z, Wang M, Mendez CE, Egede LE. Accessibility of Medicare diabetes prevention programs and variation by state, race, and ethnicity. JAMA Netw Open. 2021 Oct 1;4(10):e2128797. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.28797