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Cardiovascular Health

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Cardiovascular Health

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  • Minnesota 2035 Plan
  • Minnesota Stroke Program
  • About Us

Learn More

  • About Heart Attacks
  • About Heart Disease
  • About High Blood Pressure
  • About High Cholesterol
  • About Stroke

Related Topics

  • Chronic Conditions
  • Diabetes
  • Nutrition
  • Physical Activity
  • Tobacco

 

Contact Info
Cardiovascular Health Program
health.heart@state.mn.us
health.stroke@state.mn.us

Contact Info

Cardiovascular Health Program
health.heart@state.mn.us
health.stroke@state.mn.us

Cardiovascular Health Indicator
Measure: Blood Pressure Medication Adherence

Indicator Date of Most Recent Measure Current Measure Trend
Percentage of adults who are adherent to their antihypertensive medications 2015 ACE/ARB: 78.3%
Diuretics: 72.7%
Improving
 
  • Overview
  • Analysis
  • Other Resources
  • Data Source & Definitions

Overview

  • In 2015, approximately 3 out of 4 Minnesotans taking blood pressure medications followed their doctor’s orders on taking the medications. Taking medications according to your doctor’s orders is associated with better control of high blood pressure.
  • For one class of medications, ACE Inhibitors and ARBs, 78.3% of Minnesotans are adherent to their medications, a modest improvement since 2010.
  • For a second class of medications, diuretics, a slightly lower percentage of Minnesotans (72.7%) are adherent to their medications, a slight improvement since 2010.

Analysis

As shown in Table 1 and Chart 1 below, adherence to ACE Inhibitors and ARBs has improved by 4.5 percentage points since 2010, from 73.8% to 78.3%. Adherence to diuretics has consistently lagged ACE Inhibitors and ARBs, but has also improved slightly from 2010 to 2015, rising from 70.2% to 72.7%.

Table 1: Blood Pressure Medication Adherence for Minnesota Adults, 2010-2015

Year ACE Inhibitors/ARBs Diuretics
2010 73.8% 70.2%
2011 73.7% 70.9%
2012 74.4% 71.3%
2013 74.7% 72.1%
2014 76.5% 71.8%
2015 78.3% 72.7%

Chart 1: Blood Pressure Medication Adherence for Minnesota Adults, 2010-2015

Chart 1, see table 1 below for details.

Table 2 shows the percentage of adults who are adherent to their blood pressure medication improves with age. For patients 65 years of age and older, approximately 8 out of 10 are taking their blood pressure medications according to their doctor’s orders; this drops to only slightly more than half of adults 18 to 44 years of age.

Table 2: Blood Pressure Medication Adherence by Age Group, 2015

Age Group ACE Inhibitors or ARBs Diuretics
18-44 years 59.9% 52.4%
45-64 years 76.3% 72.4%
65+ years 83.7% 76.8%

Table 3 shows disparities in blood pressure medication adherence by type of insurance. Medicaid beneficiaries have the lowest rate of adherence to blood pressure medication and Medicare patients have the highest (25.9 percentage points lower for ACE Inhibitors or ARBs and 24.5 percentage points lower for diuretics). This is consistent with the pattern by age, as patients on Medicare are much more likely to be 65 years or older.

Table 3: Blood Pressure Medication Adherence by Type of Insurance, 2015

Payer ACE Inhibitors or ARBs Diuretics
Medicare 84.4% 77.2%
Dually-Eligible Medicare/Medicaid 75.6% 68.0%
Medicaid 58.5% 52.7%
Commercial 78.9% 74.4%
 
 
 
 
 

Other Resources

  • Medicare Part C and D Performance Data
    This page from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) allows users to download spreadsheets of performance data on medication adherence (including blood pressure medications) for Medicare Part D Prescription Drug contracts.

  • Interactive Atlas of Heart Disease & Stroke
    Online mapping tool from CDC with health indicators (including mortality and hospitalizations), risk factors, social and economic data, health care delivery, insurance, and health care costs data for states and counties. Some census tract data is also available.

Data Source

The data are analyses conducted by the Minnesota Department of Health based on pharmacy, medical, and enrollment data from the Minnesota All Payer Claims Database (MN APCD). The MN APCD is a state repository of health care claims data that is derived from medical providers’ billing records sent to insurance companies, plan administrators and public payers. It contains claims for about 89 percent of Minnesotans with insurance coverage.

Measure Definition

This measure uses a calculation of proportion of days covered (PDC). The PDC calculation is based on the fill dates and days supply for each fill of a prescription. The denominator for the PDC (at the patient-level) is the number of days between the first fill of the medication during the measurement period and the end of the measurement period. The patient-level numerator for the PDC is the number of days covered by the prescription fills during the denominator period. A patient must have been covered for at least 80% of the days to meet the measure. The adherence measure is the percent of adults taking a blood pressure medication who have met the 80% days covered threshold. This measure looks at two types of blood pressure medications: renin angiotensin system antagonists (RASAs), which includes both Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and Angiotensin II Receptor Blockers (ARBs), and diuretics.

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  • cardiovascular
Last Updated: 01/03/2023

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