Han, Gang
Spencer, Matthew Scott
Ahn, SangNam
Smith, Matthew Lee
Zhong, Lixian
Andreyeva, Elena
Carpenter, Keri
Towne, Samuel D. Jr.
Preston, Veronica Averhart
Ory, Marcia G.
Funding for this research was provided by:
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802, 23-428802)
Article History
Received: 6 October 2022
Accepted: 5 October 2023
First Online: 18 October 2023
Declarations
:
: This study was deemed as “non-human subjects research” by the Texas A&M Institutional Review Board (Organization Number: IORG00000397) since there was no personal contact with the subjects. Our IRB determination (IRB # IRB2020-0204) did not require individualized informed consent. Analyzing non-experimental deidentified administrative claims data, it was not possible to obtain informed consent from patients and/or their legal guardians. All methods were carried out in accordance with relevant secondary data guidelines and regulations.
: N/A.
: The Texas A&M investigators have no competing interest. At the time of the study, one co-author, Veronica Preston, was an employee at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas who sponsored the study. Dr. Preston is no longer with BCBSTX. The funding agency was given the opportunity to perform a cursory review of the manuscript and offer feedback based on the description of their data and related context. The funders, however, did not contribute to the research study design or statistical methods employed. Further, they did not have authority to censor or suppress any potential findings. The rest of the authors have no Conflict of interest to declare.