Satisfaction with Health Care of Dually Eligible Older Beneficiaries

Satisfaction with health care was compared for dually eligible older beneficiaries receiving care in three settings: a managed care organization (MCO) that is at risk for providing Medicare and Medicaid benefits (n=200); the fee-for-service (FFS) sector in the same ZIP Code (n=201); and respondents to the national Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) (n=531). Patients in the MCO were more likely to be highly satisfied in three domains—global quality, access to care, and technical skills—compared with patients in the local and national FFS study groups but fewer were highly satisfied with the interpersonal manner of their providers.