Reports have good health news for Wayne and Pike

By PAMELA CHERGOTIS

WAYNE AND PIKE COUNTIES, PA – There is good health news for Wayne and Pike counties in the latest reports from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council (PHC4).

The new reports on phc4.org provide hospitalization and outpatient treatment rates for each county, breaking the data down into categories by age, gender and certain health conditions, including opioid overdose and opioid use disorder, maternal opioid-related stays, neonatal drug withdrawal, breast cancer surgery, potentially preventable hospitalizations, diabetes, sepsis and C. difficile infections.

In data collected from January 1 to December 31, 2023, the hospitalization rate for opioid overdoses in Pike and Wayne was “not reported due to low volume.” Statewide, the rate in 2023 was 21.4 per 100,000 residents ages 15 and older.

The same low number applies to maternal opioid-related hospitalizations in Pike and Wayne. Last year, the statewide rate for such hospitalizations was 21.4 per 100,000 residents ages 15 and older.

The rate of hospitalizations due to opioid use disorders is higher but still comparatively low in Pike (98 per 100,000 residents ages 15 and older) and Wayne (63.1 compared to 281.1 statewide).

Other hospital stays

According to reports, the rate of “potentially preventable hospitalizations” in Pike County is nearly half the statewide average and is also comparatively low in Wayne County (see sidebar for more information).

Pike and Wayne also have lower hospitalization rates – in some cases much lower – than the national rate for breast cancer surgery, diabetes, C. difficile infection and sepsis. Overuse of antibiotics is a major risk factor for C. difficile infections, which are highly contagious and can cause serious intestinal illness in hospitalized patients.

Medicare and Medicaid

Wayne County has a higher percentage of inpatient hospital stays paid for by Medicare: 54.3 percent in 2023 compared to 47.7 percent statewide. Pike County is more in line with the statewide percentage at 48.9 percent.

At the same time, the number of inpatient hospital stays in Wayne County for which Medicaid is the payer was 14.7 percent in 2023, below the national percentage of 19.9 percent. In Pike County, it was 20.4 percent, slightly higher than the national percentage.

A mission to control costs

PHC4 is funded primarily through Pennsylvania’s state budget. The state says increased competition will contain costs.

Barry Buckingham, chief executive of PHC4, said it was crucial to break down facts by county.

“These reports shed light on critical components of health care and provide valuable insights into public health in the Commonwealth, particularly at the county level,” he said.

PHC4 was established under Pennsylvania law to collect, analyze, and publish data and to assist the Governor and Legislature when they request recommendations on health insurance benefits.

The organization also produces customized reports for different user groups, from hospitals and policy makers to researchers, physicians, insurers and group purchasers.

To view the reports, visit phc4.org.