Patients in private managed care health plans who are hospitalized for mental illness are more likely to receive follow-up care than are patients in Medicare or Medicaid plans, according to a report from the Commonwealth Fund.
In 2009, 77% of private health plan members aged 6 years and older who received inpatient treatment for a mental health disorder had follow-up care within 30 days of their discharge, compared with 60% for Medicaid patients and 55% for Medicare, based on data from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).
The private sector has improved slightly since 2000, when the follow-up rate was 71%, but as for the public sector, "a small improvement among Medicaid plans was offset by a similar decline among Medicare plans," the report noted.
Note: Based on data from the NCQA Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set.
Source: Commonwealth Fund