Variation in geographic access to chemotherapy by definitions of providers and service locations: a population-based observational study

Table 3 Percent of patients residing in the same ZIP code as a chemotherapy provider by provider definition for proven service locations

	Provider identified by specialty code	Provider identified by billing code	Absolute difference	p-value
All registries	23.8 %	35.7 %	11.9 %	<0.0001
Connecticut	23.5 %	36.0 %	12.4 %	<0.0001
Iowa	17.9 %	35.0 %	17.1 %	<0.0001
New Jersey	26.9 %	43.5 %	16.6 %	<0.0001

Data are from SEER-Medicare. Sample included all patients diagnosed with lung cancer that were reported to the SEER registries in 2006. Chemotherapy providers were identified in one of two ways: by specialty codes reported on Carrier claims (83 for Hematology/Oncology and 90 for Medical Oncology), and by chemotherapy-related billing codes on Carrier claims (Table 1). Proven service locations are locations from where providers billed a chemotherapy-related service, as opposed to possible locations, where providers billed for any service. These measures do not make any assumptions about whether beneficiaries received chemotherapy or from whom, and are instead a measure of potential access to care

ISSN: 1472-6963