This paper by Suaya et al. provides evidence that less than 20% of Medicare-eligible patients >65 years of age who had a coronary heart disease (CHD) event (myocardial infarction or coronary artery bypass graft surgery procedure) in 1997 participated in a cardiac rehabilitation secondary prevention program. Risk factors for lack of participation included older age, female gender, ethnicity, lower social economic status, presence of comorbidity, and distance from the rehabilitation secondary prevention centers. This dismal statistic emphasizes the need to take action to ensure that the majority of patients who experience a CHD event participate in cardiac rehabilitation/secondary prevention programs.
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