Jose F Figueroa

Biographic Data

ID5544462
NAMEJose F Figueroa
GIVEN NAMESJose F
FAMILY NAMEFigueroa
SIGNATUREFIGUEROA J F
AFFILIATIONSHarvard University
ORCID0000-0003-3811-257X
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS25
TOTAL CITATIONS0
AUTHOR COUNT25
EDITOR COUNT0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR2017
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2025
H-INDEX0

  • Payment Source Shift for Surgical Care Among Veterans Enrolled in Medicare Advantage Plans

    Open AccessWinta T Mehtsun, Yanlei Ma et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest substantial cost shifting in veterans' surgical care from MA to VHA among high-veteran MA plans, underscoring the urgent need for policy reforms to improve the efficiency of veterans' care

  • Structural Discrimination in Nonprofit Hospital Community Benefit Spending

    Open AccessAaron Hedquist, David Blumenthal et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    This cross-sectional study found that nonprofit hospitals' CBS was regressively allocated across US communities, with more socially vulnerable or racially and ethnically minoritized communities receiving less benefit than more affluent, non-Hispanic White communities, suggesting that the nonprofit tax system may be structurally discriminatory and contributing to health disparities

  • Racial Disparities in Premature Mortality and Unrealized Medicare Benefits Across US States

    Open AccessIrene Papanicolas, Maecey Niksch et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    This cohort study examines racial disparities in premature mortality in the US and discusses the implications of these trends for unrealized Medicare benefits among populations with lower life expectancies

  • US Coverage Changes During Medicaid Unwinding in 2023

    Open AccessAdrianna McIntyre, Molly Morein et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    In this cross-sectional study, millions lost Medicaid during unwinding (with wide state variation), but survey data indicated smaller coverage reductions. Re-enrollment after termination and unawareness of COVID-19 pandemic coverage partially explain this discrepancy. Coverage losses were concentrated among certain demographic groups, with some evidence of reduced care affordability. These results may inform expectations about recent Medicaid pro…

  • Characteristics and Benefit Design of Veteran Medicare Advantage Affinity Plans

    Open AccessAllison Dorneo, Yanlei Ma et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    This study found that MA insurers-specifically VMAPs-engaged in targeted marketing to veterans, offering $0 premiums, cash back benefits, and supplemental benefits. However, nearly all VMAPs excluded Medicare Part D, likely designed to attract veteran enrollees who use VHA care, making them low-cost enrollees to the plan. Since the VHA cannot bill plans for Medicare-covered services, VMAPs may be increasing wasteful federal spending

  • Mitigating the Dangers of Medicaid Churn Among Dual-Eligible Beneficiaries

    Open AccessEric T Roberts, Jose F FigueroaARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2025

    This Viewpoint considers strategies for reducing Medicaid coverage disruptions for dual-eligible individuals

  • Nationwide Availability of and Enrollment in Medicare and Medicaid Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans With Exclusively Aligned Enrollment

    Open AccessKenton J Johnston, Michelle A Hendricks et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2024

    This study found that availability of and enrollment in D-SNPs with exclusively aligned enrollment are increasing, but the overall proportion enrolled remains low. Further reforms are needed to promote aligned enrollment

  • Institutional Efforts to Address Legacies of Slavery—Implications for the Health Care System

    Open AccessSara N Bleich, Jose F Figueroa et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2024

    This JAMA Forum discusses the legacies of slavery, efforts underway at colleges and universities to explore and address the legacies of slavery, and health care system actions to address structural racism

  • Coverage and Access Changes During Medicaid Unwinding

    Open AccessAdrianna McIntyre, Benjamin D Sommers et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2024

    The results of this survey study indicated that 6 months into unwinding, 1 in 8 Medicaid beneficiaries reported exiting the program, with wide state variation. Roughly half who lost Medicaid coverage became uninsured. Among those moving to new coverage, many experienced coverage gaps. Adults exiting Medicaid reported more challenges accessing care than respondents who remained enrolled

  • The Alarming Risks for Dually Eligible Beneficiaries During Heat Waves

    Open AccessJose F FigueroaARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2024

  • Cost Shifting for Emergency Care of Veterans With Medicare After Mission Act Implementation

    Open AccessL Burke, Yanlei Ma et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2024

    This cross-sectional study examines changes in payers for emergency department visits in Veterans Affairs and community facilities from 2016 to 2021

  • Why the US spends more treating high-need high-cost patients

    Open AccessLuca Lorenzoni, Alberto Marino et al.ARTICLEHealth Policy2023

    One of the most pressing challenges facing most health care systems is rising costs. As the population ages and the demand for health care services grows, there is a growing need to understand the drivers of these costs across systems. This paper attempts to address this gap by examining utilization and spending of the course of a year for two specific high-need high-cost patient types: a frail older person with a hip fracture and an older person…

  • Association Between Community-Level Social Risk and Spending Among Medicare Beneficiaries

    Open AccessBrian W Powers, Jose F Figueroa et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2023

    In this cross-sectional study of Medicare beneficiaries, the ADI explained little variation in health care spending, was negatively correlated with spending conditional on demographic and clinical characteristics, and was poorly correlated with self-reported social risk factors. This prompts caution and nuance when using community-level measures of social risk such as the ADI for social risk adjustment within Medicare value-based payment programs

  • Evaluation of Potentially Avoidable Acute Care Utilization Among Patients Insured by Medicare Advantage vs Traditional Medicare

    Open AccessAdam L Beckman, Austin B Frakt et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2023

    The findings of this cross-sectional study of Medicare Advantage and traditional Medicare patients with ACSCs indicate that apparent gains in lowering rates of potentially avoidable acute care have been associated with shifting inpatient care to settings such as ED direct discharges and observation stays

  • Structural Racism In Historical And Modern US Health Care Policy

    Open AccessRuqaiijah Yearby, Brietta R Clark et al.ARTICLEHealth Affairs2022

    The COVID-19 pandemic has illuminated and amplified the harsh reality of health inequities experienced by racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States. Members of these groups have disproportionately been infected and died from COVID-19, yet they still lack equitable access to treatment and vaccines. Lack of equitable access to high-quality health care is in large part a result of structural racism in US health care policy, which struct…

  • Association Between Self-reported Health-Related Social Needs and Acute Care Utilization Among Older Adults Enrolled in Medicare Advantage

    Open AccessMelanie Canterberry, Jose F Figueroa et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2022

    In this cross-sectional study of older adults enrolled in Medicare Advantage, self-reported HRSNs were common and associated with statistically significantly increased rates of acute care utilization, with variation in which HRSNs were associated with different utilization measures. These findings provide evidence of the unique association between certain HRSNs and different types of acute care utilization, which could help refine the development…

  • Trends in High-Severity Billing of Hospitalized Medicare Beneficiaries Treated by Hospitalists vs Nonhospitalists

    Open AccessAgustina Saenz, Agustina D Saenz et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2022

    In this cohort study of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries treated in hospitals, high-severity billing increased over time for hospital encounters at higher rates for hospitalists than for nonhospitalists. These differences do not appear to be explained by patient complexity. The increase in the number of hospitalists over time may be contributing to rising national costs related to hospital care

  • Assessment of Strategies Used in US Hospitals to Address Social Needs During the Covid-19 Pandemic

    Open AccessJose F Figueroa, Ciara Duggan et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2022

    This survey study uses 2020 American Hospital Association data to assess strategies of US hospitals serving vulnerable populations in addressing social needs during the COVID-19 pandemic

  • Covid-19–Related Insurance Coverage Changes and Disparities in Access to Care Among Low-Income US Adults in 4 Southern States

    Open AccessJose F Figueroa, Peggah R Khorrami et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2021

    In this survey of US adults, uninsured rates increased among low-income adults in 4 Southern states during the COVID-19 pandemic, but Medicaid expansion states, that association was diminished among Black and Latinx individuals. Nonfinancial barriers to care because of the pandemic were common in all states

  • Variation in Use of Surgical Care During the Covid-19 Pandemic by Surgical Urgency and Race and Ethnicity

    Open AccessThomas C Tsai, Ava Ferguson Bryan et al.ARTICLEJAMA Health Forum2021

    As shown by this cohort study, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in large disruptions to surgical care across all categories of operative urgency, especially elective procedures. Racial and ethnic minority groups experienced less of a disruption to surgical care than White patients. Further research is needed to explore whether the decreased surgical use among White patients was owing to patient discretion and to document whether demand for surgical…

  • Community-Level Factors Associated With Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Covid-19 Rates In Massachusetts

    Jose F Figueroa, Rishi K Wadhera et al.ARTICLEHealth Affairs2020

    Massachusetts has one of the highest cumulative incidence rates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases in the US. Understanding which specific demographic, economic, and occupational factors have contributed to disparities in COVID-19 incidence rates across the state is critical to informing public health strategies. We performed a cross-sectional study of 351 Massachusetts cities and towns from January 1 to May 6, 2020, and found that a 10…

  • Variation in Covid-19 Hospitalizations and Deaths Across New York City Boroughs

    Rishi K Wadhera, Priya Wadhera et al.ARTICLEJAMA2020

    This study describes demographic characteristics and hospital bed capacities of the 5 New York City boroughs, and evaluates whether differences in testing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), hospitalizations, and deaths have emerged as a signal of racial, ethnic, and financial disparities.

  • Association between industry payments for opioid products and physicians’ prescription of opioids

    K Inoue, Jose F Figueroa et al.ARTICLEJournal of Epidemiology and…2020References: 25

    Background Industry marketing to physicians for opioids has received substantial attention as it can potentially influence physicians’ prescription of opioids. However, robust evidence demonstrating a causal link between industry payments for opioids and physicians’ prescription practice for opioids is lacking. Methods Using the national databases of physicians treating Medicare beneficiaries, we examined the association between physicians’ recei…

  • Comparison of Hospital Mortality and Readmission Rates for Medicare Patients Treated by Male vs Female Physicians

    Yusuke Tsugawa, Anupam B Jena et al.ARTICLEJAMA Internal Medicine2017

    Importance: Studies have found differences in practice patterns between male and female physicians, with female physicians more likely to adhere to clinical guidelines and evidence-based practice. However, whether patient outcomes differ between male and female physicians is largely unknown. Objective: To determine whether mortality and readmission rates differ between patients treated by male or female physicians. Design, Setting, and Participan…

  • Safety-net Hospitals Face More Barriers Yet Use Fewer Strategies to Reduce Readmissions

    Jose F Figueroa, Karen E Joynt et al.ARTICLEMedical Care2017References: 17

    OBJECTIVE: US hospitals that care for vulnerable populations, "safety-net hospitals" (SNHs), are more likely to incur penalties under the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program, which penalizes hospitals with higher-than-expected readmissions. Understanding whether SNHs face unique barriers to reducing readmissions or whether they underuse readmission-prevention strategies is important. DESIGN: We surveyed leadership at 1600 US acute care hospit…