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Changes in outpatient antibiotic utilization, 2000–2016: More people are receiving fewer antibiotics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2019

Noelle M. Cocoros*
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
Aileen Ochoa
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts
Michael Klompas
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts
*
Author for correspondence: Noelle M. Cocoros Email: Noelle_cocoros@harvardpilgrim.org

Abstract

We examined annual outpatient antibiotic dispensings within a health insurance plan covering ∼970,000 members per year during 2000–2016. The proportion of members with antibiotic dispensings decreased from 33.3% in 2000 to 25.9% in 2016. This trend was consistent in all stratifications of age, race/ethnicity, sex, and comorbidities.

Type
Concise Communication
Copyright
© 2019 by The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. All rights reserved. 

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