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Comparative Study
. 2003 Summer;24(4):127-41.

Prescription drug use in the elderly: a descriptive analysis

Elizabeth D Moxey  1 , John P O'Connor, Karen D Novielli, Steven Teutsch, David B Nash
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Prescription drug use in the elderly: a descriptive analysis

Elizabeth D Moxey et al. Health Care Financ Rev. 2003 Summer.

Abstract

In the current policy debate, pharmaceutical use in the elderly has been characterized largely by its economic impact, with little discussion of what drugs the elderly are taking. Based on data from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS), this study defines subgroups of the community-dwelling elderly using health and functional status, and provides a comprehensive description of the composition of prescription drug use in this population. Drugs are classified into 16 primary therapeutic classes, with further breakdown into secondary classes and characterization by chronic versus acute use. Utilization is reported by age and health status categories.

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