Research Alert: February 22, 2018

Rural/Urban Disparities in Pneumococcal Vaccine Service Delivery Among the Fee-for-Service Medicare Population

The objective of this study was to identify rural versus urban disparities in pneumococcal vaccine provision in the elderly (age 65 or older) adult population and assess the impact of pharmacy as an alternate site provider in rural communities.

In 2014, over two-thirds (72.5%) of pneumococcal vaccine services were delivered to fee-for-service Medicare recipients by primary care providers, while pharmacy providers accounted for almost one-fourth (22.2%) of all pneumococcal vaccine services provided. A significantly greater proportion of pneumococcal vaccine services were delivered by pharmacy providers in rural versus urban counties (29.4% vs. 21.1%; P < .001). In addition to the descriptive results, we calculated multivariate regression models to identify county-level characteristics associated with receipt of pneumococcal vaccine. Our models indicate that pharmacy providers have a significant impact on pneumococcal vaccine delivery in rural areas.

Additional Resources of Interest:

• More information about the Rural and Underserved Health Research Center
• More information from the Rural Health Information Hub's topic guides: Healthcare Access, Healthcare Workforce, Pharmacy and Prescription Drugs, Public Health Agencies, Rural Health Disparities, Rural Health Policy