Note(s): Standard errors are in parentheses. *p < 0.10; **p < 0.05; ***p < 0.01. All models are weighted by county population

The matched sample is from one-to-one nearest neighbor matching

In all models, we included poverty rate, unemployment rate, median household income, percentages of the population between 15 and 24, between 25 and 44, between 45 and 64, 65 and above, Health Professional Shortage Area indicators, county-level fixed effects, and state-year fixed effects. Full results are available from the authors on request

^aRate of hospital stays for ambulatory-care sensitive conditions per 100,000 Medicare enrollees

^bPercentage of female Medicare enrollees ages 65–74 that received an annual mammography screening

^cPercentage of fee-for-service (FFS) Medicare enrollees that had an annual flu vaccination

^dTotal inpatient days of short-term general, short-term non-general, long-term, and Veterans hospitals. Inpatient days are the no. of adult and pediatric days of care, excluding newborn days of care, rendered during the entire reporting period. Neonatal and swing admissions are included

^eTotal outpatient visits for short-term general, short-term non-general, long-term, and Veterans hospitals. It consists of emergency visits, other visits (including clinic and referred visits), and total visits. An outpatient visit is defined as a visit by a patient not lodged in the hospital while receiving medical, dental, or other services. Each visit an outpatient makes to a discrete unit constitutes one visit regardless of the no. of diagnostic and/or therapeutic treatments that the patient receives

Source(s): Author’s own creation/work