TY - JOUR
T1 - Prenatal Syphilis Screening Among Medicaid Enrollees in 6 Southern States
AU - Lanier, Paul
AU - Kennedy, Susan
AU - Snyder, Angela
AU - Smith, Jessica
AU - Napierala, Eric
AU - Talbert, Jeffrey
AU - Hammerslag, Lindsey
AU - Humble, Larry
AU - Myers, Eddy
AU - Austin, Anna
AU - Blount, Thomas
AU - Dowler, Shannon
AU - Mobley, Victoria
AU - Fede, Ana Lòpez De
AU - Nguyen, Hoa
AU - Bruce, Jean
AU - Grijalva, Carlos G.
AU - Krishnan, Sunita
AU - Otter, Caitlin
AU - Horton, Katie
AU - Seiler, Naomi
AU - Majors, John
AU - Pearson, William S.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 American Journal of Preventive Medicine
PY - 2022/5
Y1 - 2022/5
N2 - Introduction: The rates of syphilis among pregnant women and infants have increased in recent years, particularly in the U.S. South. Although state policies require prenatal syphilis testing, recent screening rates comparable across Southern states are not known. The purpose of this study is to measure syphilis screening among Medicaid enrollees with delivery in states in the U.S. South. Methods: A total of 6 state–university research partnerships in the U.S. South developed a distributed research network to analyze Medicaid claims data using a common analytic approach for enrollees with delivery in fiscal years 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 (combined N=504,943). In 2020–2021, each state calculated the percentage of enrollees with delivery with a syphilis screen test during the first trimester, third trimester, and at any point during pregnancy. Percentages for those with first-trimester enrollment were compared with the percentages of those who enrolled in Medicaid later in pregnancy. Results: Prenatal syphilis screening during pregnancy ranged from 56% to 91%. Screening was higher among those enrolled in Medicaid during the first trimester than in those enrolled later in pregnancy. Conclusions: Despite state laws requiring syphilis screening during pregnancy, screening was much lower than 100%, and states varied in syphilis screening rates among Medicaid enrollees. Findings indicate that access to Medicaid in the first trimester is associated with higher rates of syphilis screening and that efforts to improve access to screening in practice settings are needed.
AB - Introduction: The rates of syphilis among pregnant women and infants have increased in recent years, particularly in the U.S. South. Although state policies require prenatal syphilis testing, recent screening rates comparable across Southern states are not known. The purpose of this study is to measure syphilis screening among Medicaid enrollees with delivery in states in the U.S. South. Methods: A total of 6 state–university research partnerships in the U.S. South developed a distributed research network to analyze Medicaid claims data using a common analytic approach for enrollees with delivery in fiscal years 2017–2018 and 2018–2019 (combined N=504,943). In 2020–2021, each state calculated the percentage of enrollees with delivery with a syphilis screen test during the first trimester, third trimester, and at any point during pregnancy. Percentages for those with first-trimester enrollment were compared with the percentages of those who enrolled in Medicaid later in pregnancy. Results: Prenatal syphilis screening during pregnancy ranged from 56% to 91%. Screening was higher among those enrolled in Medicaid during the first trimester than in those enrolled later in pregnancy. Conclusions: Despite state laws requiring syphilis screening during pregnancy, screening was much lower than 100%, and states varied in syphilis screening rates among Medicaid enrollees. Findings indicate that access to Medicaid in the first trimester is associated with higher rates of syphilis screening and that efforts to improve access to screening in practice settings are needed.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.11.011
DO - 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.11.011
M3 - Article
C2 - 34998629
AN - SCOPUS:85122310425
SN - 0749-3797
VL - 62
SP - 770
EP - 776
JO - American Journal of Preventive Medicine
JF - American Journal of Preventive Medicine
IS - 5
ER -