The Effect of Informative Letters on the Prescription and Receipt of Schedule II Controlled Substances

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Fraud; Delivery of Health Care; Economics; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (U.S.); Health Expenditures
• Interventions: Other: Informative letter

• Registration Number: NCT02345434
• Lead Sponsor: Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab

Brief Summary

Fraud and waste is estimated to cost the American health care system nearly $200 billion each year, and the public Medicare and Medicaid programs about $60 billion each year. This study will evaluate a new method for fighting fraud: mailing informative letters to outlier providers to notify them of their aberrant behavior. These letters are targeted at high prescribers of schedule II controlled substances in Medicare Part D. The investigators will look at the effects of these letters on the behavior of providers and their patients. These effects are of substantial policy interest as they suggest how to best design anti-fraud policies. They are also of academic interest, shedding light on the behavior of physicians and their patients.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2014-08
• Study First Submitted: 2014-10-06
• Study First Submitted QC: 2015-01-19
• Study First Posted: 2015-01-26
• Primary Completion: 2015-08
• Study Completion: 2015-08
• Results First Submitted: 2021-08-05
• Status Verified: 2021-10
• Results First Submitted QC: 2021-10-11
• Last Update Submitted: 2021-10-11
• Results First Posted: 2021-11-08
• Last Update Posted: 2021-11-08

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 1525

Inclusion Criteria

• Outlier with respect to the count of schedule II prescription drug events relative to peer group of prescribers in two of the three years 2011, 2012, and 2013
• Outlier with respect to the 30-day equivalent prescriptions of schedule II substances relative to peer group of prescribers in two of the three years 2011, 2012, and 2013

Exclusion Criteria

• Deceased

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Informative letter	Informative letter	This is the treatment arm; prescribers in this arm receive an informative letter (called a comparative billing report or peer activity report)

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
30-day Equivalent Prescribing of Schedule II Controlled Substances	3 months	The prescribing of schedule II controlled substances over the 3 months following the initial sending of the letters. Prescribing is defined as the total "days supply" of schedule II controlled substances attributed to the prescriber, expressed in "30-day equivalents" i.e. divided by 30.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
30-day Equivalent Prescribing of Schedule II Controlled Substances	1 year