UCLA Health study finds low diabetes medication adherence and racial disparities

A study led by UCLA Health and published in JAMA Network Open reveals that diabetes medication adherence among 587,000 Medicare Advantage patients was below 60 percent in 2019. The research highlights significant racial disparities, noting that Black and Hispanic patients were consistently less likely to adhere to prescribed regimens than White patients.

Disparities were observed across various drug classes, including metformin, insulin, and a combination of SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists. For instance, Black patients showed a lower adherence rate to metformin at 46 percent compared to 56.5 percent for White patients.

The study suggests that financial factors and health plan rules heavily influence treatment consistency. Assistance programs, such as Medicaid and Medicare’s Part D Low-Income Subsidy, were found to significantly help reduce treatment gaps, particularly for high-cost medications like insulin and newer therapies.