Adherence rates in Medicare Part D are an example of which type of measure?

• A. Outcome measure
• B. Process measure
• C. Structure measure
• D. Patient safety indicator

Answer: (B)

Adherence rates reflect how well the medication-use process is carried out in Part D. This is a process measure because it evaluates the actions and activities involved in delivering and supporting care—such as prescribing, dispensing, patient education, and efforts to ensure patients take medications as prescribed. It does not directly measure health outcomes (like hospitalizations), nor does it assess the care setting or safety events. In Medicare Part D, adherence is used as a process-quality metric (often via measures like proportion of days covered) to gauge the effectiveness of medication management processes.