Thirty-Day Hospital Readmissions Across the Age Continuum

Interventions to prevent readmissions have focused largely on older patients (age, ≥65) — the target population of the Hospital Readmission Reduction Program. This retrospective cohort study of more than 31 million U.S. hospital admissions in 2013, based on data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, was designed to evaluate 30-day, unplanned, all-cause readmissions across all age groups.

The 30-day unplanned readmission rate following first-time admissions was 12%. The odds of readmission — adjusted for patient demographics, payer, severity of illness, number of chronic conditions, length of stay, and discharge disposition — increased significantly between ages 16 and 20, remained fairly constant throughout adulthood, and then…