Regional Variation in Outpatient Antibiotic Prescribing for Acute Respiratory Tract Infections in a Commercially Insured Population, United States, 2017.

It is likely that higher antibiotic prescribing in the South is in part due to nonclinical factors such as regional differences in clinicians' prescribing habits and patient expectations. There is a need for future studies to define and characterize these factors to better inform regional and local stewardship interventions and achieve greater health equity in antibiotic prescribing.