The incremental healthcare costs of frailty among home care recipients with and without dementia in Ontario, Canada: a cohort study

Objective — In this study, we investigated the incremental 1-year direct costs of healthcare associated with frailty among home care recipients in Ontario with and without dementia.

Methods — We conducted a cohort study of 159,570 home care clients aged 50 years and older in Ontario, Canada in 2014/2015. At index home care assessment, we ascertained dementia status using a validated algorithm and frailty level (robust, prefrail, frail) based on the proportion of accumulated to potential health deficits. Clients were followed for 1-year during which we obtained direct overall and sector-specific publicly-funded healthcare costs (in 2015 Canadian dollars). We estimated the incremental effect of frailty level on costs using a 3-part survival- and covariate-adjusted estimator. All analyses were stratified by dementia status.

Results — Among those with dementia (n=42,828), frailty prevalence was 32.1% and the average 1-year cost was $30,472. The incremental cost of frailty (vs. robust) was $10,845 [95% confidence interval (CI): $10,112–$11,698]. Among those without dementia (n=116,742), frailty prevalence was 25.6% and the average 1-year cost was $28,969. Here, the incremental cost of frailty (vs. robust) was $12,360 (95% CI: $11,849–$12,981). Large differences in survival between frailty levels reduced incremental cost estimates, particularly for the dementia group (survival effect: −$2742; 95% CI: −$2914 to −$2554).

Conclusions — Frailty was associated with greater 1-year healthcare costs for persons with and without dementia. This difference was driven by a greater intensity of healthcare utilization among frail clients. Mortality differences across the frailty levels mitigated the association especially among those with dementia.