Stroke Center Certification and Within-Hospital Racial Disparities in Treatment

Is stroke center certification associated with improved receipt of stroke treatments and health outcomes equitably for Black and White patients with Medicare who are treated in the same hospital?In this cohort study of 2.1 million patient hospitalizations with Medicare fee-for-service from 2009 to 2019, stroke center certification was associated with a significant increase in the use of thrombolytic therapy and thrombectomy for White patients but not for Black patients. No significant improvements were observed for either group in the likelihood of being home at 90 days or 1-year mortality.These findings suggest that racial disparities in stroke care persist despite increased access to care.

Corresponding Author: Renee Y. Hsia, MD, MSc, Department of Emergency Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, Box 1377, 1001 Potrero Ave, Bldg 5, Ste 6A, San Francisco, CA 94110 (renee.hsia@ucsf.edu).

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