Study: 2 in 5 Older Adults With COPD Lack Access to Beneficial Treatment

A study presented at the American Thoracic Society's 2021 conference found nearly two in five older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) cannot access required pulmonary rehabilitation services, reports United Press International . The authors identified nearly 10.3 million Medicare beneficiaries 65 and older who were diagnosed with COPD between 1999 and 2018. Data indicated that slightly fewer than 40 percent of beneficiaries reside over 10 miles away from the nearest pulmonary rehabilitation clinic. The nearest clinic offering COPD services, which include exercise and educational programs for improving lung function, is more than 25 miles away for almost 15 percent of the study group. Generally, one in four Medicare beneficiaries with COPD lives in small towns or rural areas with one pulmonary rehab clinic per 4,300 beneficiaries with COPD, on average. Previous research estimated that people who live more than 10 miles from a pulmonary rehabilitation clinic are less than half as likely to use treatment than those who live closer. "People with COPD should make themselves aware about pulmonary rehabilitation and discuss their options and available resources with their healthcare provider," advised the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Gargya Malla.