Twenty most frequent DRG groups among Medicare inpatients age 65 or older in Connecticut hospitals, fiscal years 1991, 1992, and 1993.

This report provides data on the frequency of inpatient admissions for the 20 most frequent DRG categories among Medicare inpatients age > or = 65 years at Connecticut acute care hospitals during the three-year period FY1991 to FY1993. Frequency distributions of the numbers of discharges within these 20 DRG categories are provided, in aggregate and by gender and age subgroups. There were 199,680 discharges of elderly Medicare beneficiaries within the 20 most frequent DRG categories in the three-year study period, 55.7% of all Medicare discharges. Within this total, there was year-to-year stability in total numbers of discharges and in the distribution of DRGs. By gender, 43% of elderly Medicare patients discharged in the three year period were men; 57%, women. Forty-one percent, 41%, and 18% of the discharges occurred among beneficiary age groups 65 to 74 years, 75 to 84 years, and > or = 85 years, respectively.