Addressing Provider Shortages in Rural America: The Role of State Opt-Out Policy Adoptions in Promoting Hospital Anesthesia Provision.

BACKGROUND

Shortages of anesthesia providers in rural areas have long resulted in access limitations in many US states. This situation prompted federal legislation designed to promote increased usage of certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) in hospitals. Starting in 2001, state governors were afforded the option to adopt "opt-out" provisions, giving facilities in their states flexibility in utilizing CRNAs; specifically, adopting the opt-out policy removes physician oversight requirements for Medicare billing purposes.

METHODS

We used mixed effects generalized linear models to identify predictors of CRNA service provision in hospitals from 2011-2015.

RESULTS

We found that being located in an opt-out state does not result in increased odds of CRNA service provision in US hospitals. Higher levels of deprivation in counties, being located in rural geographic areas, and being a teaching hospital all influenced CRNA service provision.

CONCLUSIONS

Given that we found no evidence that being in an opt-out state increases the odds of using CRNAs in hospitals, we contribute to the growing literature suggesting that states adopting the opt-out policy have not realized increased health care access or reduced health care costs. As a result of other contextual restrictions on hospitals' decision-making, simply adopting the opt-out policy has not been enough to address anesthesia provider shortages.