Few Hip Fracture Patients Receive Osteoporosis Care

By Catherine W. Gillespie (AARP PPI, Health Team), Pamela E. Morin (OptumLabs),

AARP Public Policy Institute

Published July 18, 2016

Summary of Publication

This analysis of national health insurance claims by the AARP Public Policy Institute highlights the importance of providing older women who have suffered hip fractures with recommended post-fracture care, including screening for underlying osteoporosis and initiating use of evidence-based osteoporosis drug therapies, if appropriate.

We found that fewer than one in five women ages 50 and older who experienced a hip fracture between 2008 and 2013 utilized recommended osteoporosis-related services within 6 months following their fractures. The age-related disparities were stark: women ages 80 and older were 34 percent less likely than those ages 50 to 79 to receive the recommended services in a timely manner. Failure to undergo bone density testing or begin taking osteoporosis drugs within six months of a hip fracture was associated with a 62 percent increase in risk of a second hip fracture among women ages 80 and older.

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