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- Title
Political Economy of Medical Food Reimbursement in the U.S.
- Authors
Adelaja, Adesoji O.; Patel, Amish; Hailu, Yohannes G.
- Abstract
Medical foods, which fall in the gray area between food and drugs, are a necessity for persons with inborn errors of metabolism. Being more expensive than regular foods, some U.S. states have mandated insurance companies to provide coverage for the afflicted community. To investigate the legislative adoption process, this paper develops a political economy model of medical food reimbursement and coverage policy. Analytical cross-state logit regression models confirm the positive influences of metabolic clinics and the political clout of the afflicted community on the probability of adoption. The countervailing interest of the insurance industry and the afflicted community were also confirmed. Results suggest that efforts by medical food companies to influence the political process could yield food market and distribution channel opportunities in states contemplating legislative adoption.
- Subjects
ELEMENTAL diet; HEALTH insurance reimbursement; HEALTH insurance; HEALTH insurance companies; HEALTH insurance policies; REGRESSION analysis
- Publication
Journal of Food Distribution Research, 2011, Vol 42, Issue 2, p37
- ISSN
0047-245X
- Publication type
Article