Table 6
Summary of the effects of state Medicaid prescription drug policies on beneficiaries' access to prescription drugs
| Probability of not getting prescription drug due to cost | |
|---|---|
| Effects of individual cost control methods1 | |
| State requires preauthorization for certain drugs | 4.5 |
| State requires copayment for drugs | 3.1 |
| State limits the number of prescriptions | -0.1 |
| State has "fail-first" requirement | 8.5 |
| Generics required by state law | 0.9 |
| Effects of multiple cost control methods2 | |
| State has implemented 4 or 5 of the above methods | 18.2* |
| State has implemented 2 or 3 methods | 10.0** |
* Difference with persons in states that have 0 or 1 requirement is statistically significant at .05 level.
** Difference with persons in states that have 0 or 1 requirement is statistically significant at .10 level.
1Items were included individually in separate regressions.
2Items were included in a single regression.
Sample includes persons enrolled in Medicaid or state coverage programs.
Results based on OLS regression controlling for the following characteristics: age, gender, family income, marital status, presence of children in the family, race/ethnicity, whether interview conducted in English, general health status, chronic conditions, enrollment in HMO, Medicaid managed care penetration in the state, U.S. Census region, residence in metro or nonmetro area, number of physicians per 1,000 persons in the county of residence.
