Geographic Variations in Incremental Costs of Heart Disease Among Medicare Beneficiaries, by Type of Service, 2012

Using 2012 data on fee-for-service Medicare claims, we documented regional and county variation in incremental standardized costs of heart disease (ie, comparing costs between beneficiaries with heart disease and beneficiaries without heart disease) by type of service (eg, inpatient, outpatient, post-acute care). Absolute incremental total costs varied by region. Although the largest absolute incremental total costs of heart disease were concentrated in southern and Appalachian counties, geographic patterns of costs varied by type of service. These data can be used to inform development of policies and payment models that address the observed geographic disparities.