Medicare spending per patient in different U.S. metropolitan areas may differ. Based on the sample data below, answer the questions that follow to determine whether the average spending in the northern region is significantly less than the average spending in the southern region at the 1 percent level.

Medicare Spending per Patient (adjusted for age, sex, and race)StatisticNorthern RegionSouthern RegionSample mean$4,324$7,426Sample standard deviation$1,537$3,495Sample size11 patients18 patients

(a-1)Choose the appropriate hypotheses. Assume_Nis the average spending in the northern region and_Sis the average spending in the southern region.

a.H₀:_NS 0 versusH₁:_N-_S>0

b.H₀:_NS 0 versusH₁:_N-_S< 0

multiple choice 1

• a
• b

(a-2)Specify the decision rule.(Use the quick rule to determine degrees of freedom. Round your answer to 3 decimal places. A negative value should be indicated by a minus sign.)

Reject the null hypothesis ift_calc<.

(b)Find the test statistict_calcassuming unequal variances.(Round your answer to 2 decimal places. A negative value should be indicated by a minus sign.)

t_calc

(c-1)Can we reject the null hypothesis?

Yes, reject the null hypothesis.

(c-2)The average spending in the northern region is significantly less than the average spending in the southern region.

True