Association of Medicare Advantage vs Traditional Medicare with 30-day mortality among patients with acute myocardial infarction

Question: Among Medicare beneficiaries with acute myocardial infarction (MI) from 2009-2018, did outcomes and treatment processes differ for patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage as compared with traditional Medicare?

Findings: In this retrospective cohort study that included 557 309 participants hospitalized with ST-segment elevation [acute] MI (STEMI) and 1 670 193 with non–ST-segment elevation [acute] MI (NSTEMI), enrollment in Medicare Advantage, compared with traditional Medicare, was associated with significantly lower adjusted 30-day mortality rates in 2009 (with STEMI: Medicare Advantage [19.1%] vs traditional Medicare [20.6%]; with NSTEMI: Medicare Advantage [12.0%] vs traditional Medicare [12.5%]). By 2018, mortality had declined in all groups, and there were no longer statistically significant differences between Medicare Advantage (17.7%) and traditional Medicare (17.8%) for STEMI or for NSTEMI (Medicare Advantage [10.9%] vs traditional Medicare [11.1%]).

Meaning: Enrollment in Medicare Advantage, compared with traditional Medicare, was associated with modestly lower rates of 30-day mortality following acute MI in 2009, and the difference was no longer statistically significant by 2018.

Landon, B. E., Anderson, T. S., Curto, V. E., Cram, P., Fu, C., Weinreb, G. G., Zaslavsky, A. M., & Ayanian, J. Z. (2022). Association of Medicare Advantage vs Traditional Medicare with 30-day mortality among patients with acute myocardial infarction. JAMA, 328(21), 2126.
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