Spending for specialized mental health treatment in The VA: 1995-2001

The mid-1990s saw dramatic changes in mental health care in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the largest provider of such care in the United States. Spending for specialized inpatient mental health care fell 21 percent from 1995 to 2001, while spending for specialized outpatient care rose 63 percent. The shift from inpatient to outpatient care was accompanied by rapid increases in outpatient medication costs. Overall, the VA reduced the average cost (per VA user) of specialized mental health care by 22 percent while it increased the number of users of these services by 35 percent.     

Health decentralization in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil: financing and care model]

This piece analyzes the funding of the public Unified Health System (UHS) in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, in order to identify the model of care that has been taking shape there since 1994. We studied 16 municipalities, selected according to their size, degree of involvement with the UHS, and socioeconomic and health conditions. We found that between 1994 and 1998 there were large increases in health spending, due to higher municipal expenditures and to rising intergovernmental transfers for outpatient care. However, the health care system taking shape in a large number of Mato Grosso municipalities is increasingly focused on an individual, curative, specialized, and highly technological type of care. Indicative of this trend is the fact that the biggest increases in spending for outpatient care--up to 300% in some municipalities--have come from diagnostic and therapeutic procedures that are of medium or high complexity. Since the resources for health care are limited, and since the model of care adopted by many municipalities continues to shift resources from primary health care to more complex procedures, we believe that the financial viability of the Unified Health System is coming into question. Although this study was limited to the state of Mato Grosso, other Brazilian municipalities are no doubt facing similar situations. The same is probably true for municipalities in other South American countries that have adopted decentralization of the health care system as one of the strategies for State reform.     

Evaluation of a scoring system recommended by the Brazilian Ministry of Health for the diagnosis of childhood tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is currently one of the main causes of death in the world. One of the difficulties for tuberculosis diagnosis in childhood is the bacteriological identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This nested case-control study aimed to compare the diagnostic values of a scoring system proposed by the Brazilian Ministry of Heath for diagnosis of childhood tuberculosis using gastric washing samples taken in the outpatient and hospital settings. A total of 108 children underwent gastric washing (53 with and 55 without tuberculosis). The scoring system proposed by the Brazilian Ministry of Heath for diagnosis of tuberculosis in children with negative sputum smears showed good sensitivity in both groups, and the best cutoff point was "1" (possible tuberculosis), with 92% sensitivity, thus feasible for use as an ancillary diagnostic test in children submitted to gastric washing. Our recommendation is that the Ministry of Health scoring system be used by health services to assist the physician in deciding on whether to continue the investigation of childhood tuberculosis, and not only in children who have already undergone the procedure and who have shown negative results.     

The demand for episodes of mental health services

Observational studies of demand for mental health services showed much greater use by those with more generous insurance, but this difference may have been due to adverse selection, rather than in response to price. This paper avoids the adverse selection problem by using data from a randomized trial, the RAND Health Insurance Experiment (HIE). Participating families were randomly assigned to insurance plans that either provided free care or were a mixture of first dollar coinsurance and free care after a cap on out-of-pocket spending was reached. We estimate that separate effects of coinsurance and the cap on the demand for episodes of outpatient mental health services. We find that outpatient mental health use is more responsive to price than is outpatient medical use, but not as responsive as most observational studies have indicated. Those with no insurance coverage would spend about one-quarter as much on mental health care as they would with free care. Coinsurance reduces the number of episodes of treatment, but has only a small effect on the duration and intensity of use within episodes. Users appear to anticipate exceeding the cap, and spend at more than the free rate after they do so.     

Value for the money spent? Exploring the relationship between expenditures, insurance adequacy, and access to care for publicly insured children

This study examines the relationship between total state Medicaid spending per child and measures of insurance adequacy and access to care for publicly insured children. Using the 2007 National Survey of Children's Health, seven measures of insurance adequacy and health care access were examined for publicly insured children (n = 19,715). Aggregate state-level measures were constructed, adjusting for differences in demographic, health status, and household characteristics. Per member per month (PMPM) state Medicaid spending on children ages 0-17 was calculated from capitated, fee-for-service, and administrative expenses. Adjusted measures were compared with PMPM state Medicaid spending in scatter plots, and multilevel logistic regression models tested how well state-level expenditures predicted individual adequacy and access measures. Medicaid spending PMPM was a significant predictor of both insurance adequacy and receipt of mental health services. An increase of $50 PMPM was associated with a 6-7 % increase in the likelihood that insurance would always cover needed services and allow access to providers (p = 0.04) and a 19 % increase in the likelihood of receiving mental health services (p < 0.01). For the remaining four measures, PMPM was a consistent (though not statistically significant) positive predictor. States with higher total spending per child appear to assure better access to care for Medicaid children. The policies or incentives used by the few states that get the greatest value--lower-than-median spending and higher-than-median adequacy and access--should be examined for potential best practices that other states could adapt to improve value for their Medicaid spending.     

The Brazilian Ministry of Health policy model in the 1990s

This paper analyzes the policy model of the Brazilian Ministry of Health from 1990 to 2002. The methodology included interviews with key actors in the national health policy, document review, and analysis of the Federal budget and official databases. The Brazilian Ministry of Health underwent major changes under the influence of the health reform agenda and the liberal State reform agenda prevailing in the 1990s, shaped by two movements: institutional unification of national policy control and political/administrative decentralization. The Federal role was diminished in terms of direct services provision, and there were changes in financing and regulation. The model in the late 1990s featured strong Federal induction of States and municipalities and the adoption of market regulation strategies. There is no record of a long-term planning effort, which favors distortions in the Federal intervention model and hinders solutions to structural problems in the Brazilian health system.     

Primary health care, basic health care, and family health program: synergies and singularities in the Brazilian context

This article analyzes the concepts of primary health care, basic health care, and family health care as used in official documents by the Brazilian Ministry of Health, final reports of the National Conferences on Health and Human Resources, the Basic Operational Ruling on Human Resources, and texts accessed on-line by BIREME. The data analysis, through double-entry matrices, showed a lack of these references in Brazilian health policy formulation and implementation. Basic Operational Ruling 96 (NOB/96) plays a distinct role in this regard; the national conference reports show an important gap in this debate, and most of the published articles present the concepts of primary care and basic care with the meaning of health unit or local service. Articles on the Family Health Program refer to it more as a program than a strategy, and the articles analyzing such concepts show the influence of rationalities underlying the different strategies for organization of health services in the Brazilian scenario, namely Health Surveillance and Programmatic Actions in Health and in Defense of Life.     

Rereading contraceptive policy: health professionals' views of daily routine in public health services

This essay is part a larger study on the relationship between the Brazilian government and contraceptive policy and precedes a survey performed in health services in Rio de Janeiro. It is also intended to analyze what health care professionals and users think about contraception. It presents considerations by a social worker with experience in family planning activities in outlying public health care services and also provides data facilitating activities in this area. It thus touches on some elements that interfere in practical work in this field, such as academic life and social representation, in addition to submitting a written critique to PAISM (the Brazilian Ministry of Health's Program for Integrated Women's Health Care) as an official contraceptive policy.     

The mental health care model in Brazil: a history of policy development from 1990 to 2004

This article analyzes the underlying conditions in the development of Brazil's national policy for mental health care from 1990 to 2004, with the aim of identifying the priorities in each historical stage of the policy, based on a review and analysis of rulings and other official documents issued by the Ministry of Health during this period. Four stages in the mental health care policy are discussed, the seminal period, latency, resumption, and expansion, seeking to identify the principal policy guidelines and their correlations with the overall context of the Unified National Health System (SUS). Finally, the article provides an overview of the mental health care model developed under this policy, comparing it to the Basaglian theoretical and ideological framework, the reference adopted by the Brazilian psychiatric reform movement, and suggesting elements for reflection on the work of the National Division of Mental Health.     

Training and challenges for the health care system in Brazil: an analysis of investments to expand health care service delivery

The goal of this study is to discuss the investments made by the Brazilian government to expand health care service delivery in the Unified National Health System (SUS) from 1995 to 2001. The data indicate a mismatch between investments to increase service delivery and maintenance and optimization of the health service network's capacity. The paper concludes that there is a need to guarantee financial maintenance of the system and conduct new investments based on an analysis of the installed capacity and the financial possibilities to guarantee resources for continuous delivery of this additional services supply.     

Characteristics of private health care services in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

To study the organization of private health services in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, a survey was carried out in 1994 involving 174 facilities registered at the Brazilian Institute of Statistics and Geography - IBGE. Health services characteristics studied were the following: number of physicians, hospital beds, production and cost of outpatient services, and legislative aspects. Health services were classified according to the amount of resources each type of granting agency contributed to support outpatient care. We found that the majority (51.1%) of private health care services in Salvador do not depend on public funds. The main sources of revenue for health services are private health insurance (41.9%) and other kinds of private health plans (54%). These changes in the organization of health services challenge health planners to review strategies for municipalization of health care and the relations between public and private health services in Brazil.     

Getting what you pay for: public health spending and the performance of essential public health services.

Governmental spending in public health varies widely across communities, raising questions about how these differences may affect the availability of essential services and infrastructure. This study used data from local public health systems that participated in the National Public Health Performance Standards Program pilot tests between 1999 and 2001 to examine the association between public health spending and the performance of essential public health services. Results indicated that performance varies significantly with both local and federal spending levels, even after controlling for other system and community characteristics. Some public health services appear more sensitive to these expenditures than others, and all services appear more sensitive to local spending than to state or federal spending. These findings can assist public health decision makers in identifying public health financing priorities during periods of change in the resources available to support local public health infrastructure.     

天津市医疗机构精神卫生服务资源和利用状况调查

目的了解天津市医疗机构精神卫生服务资源和利用情况,为制定天津市精神卫生服务规划提供基础数据。方法使用《天津市医疗机构精神卫生服务状况调查问卷》调查并分析天津市18个区县365家医疗机构2006年精神卫生资源分布情况及精神卫生服务提供和利用情况。结果 2006年天津市有60家医疗机构提供精神卫生服务,共拥有精神科医生561人,精神科护士885人,精神科床位4281张,按人口密度计算分别为5.4/10万、8.5/10万、4.1张/万。全年总住院10449人次,门诊为434120人次。精神卫生资源相对集中于市内六区和其他六区,精神专科医院较综合医院的精神卫生资源更为丰富,三级医院所拥有的资源又明显多于一、二级医院。住院服务的利用主要在市内六区和精神专科医院,门诊服务利用主要在市内六区和非精神专科医院。结论天津市精神卫生资源处于国内较高水平,但是资源的分布和服务的利用极为不均衡,存在资源相对短缺和利用不足。     

Trends in Medicare Part B mental health utilization and expenditures: 1987-92

This article examines the impact of expanding Medicare Part B coverage of mental health services, based on analysis of 6 years of Medicare Part B claims data (1987-92). Inflation-adjusted per capita spending more than doubled (from $9.91 to $21.63) following the elimination of the annual outpatient treatment limit and extension of direct reimbursement to clinical psychologists and social workers. There was a 73-percent increase in the user rate (from 23.25 to 40.20 per 1,000 Medicare beneficiaries), and a 27-percent increase in the average number of services per user (from 8.9 to 11.3). Mental health spending increased from 1 percent to 2 percent of expenditures for Part B professional services. Ongoing monitoring of mental health utilization is desirable to ensure that recent access gains are not eroded with the increasing shift to managed care and implementation of gatekeeper mechanisms.     

State mental health agency spending, 1985–1990

Major differences exist among states in the level of spending on mental health care, in the magnitude and direction of changes in those levels, and in the share of resources devoted to state hospital and community-based services. Using data collected by the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) Research Institute, this article describes those differences and examines their relation to a set of state-level fiscal determinants of mental health spending. Levels of spending in 1990 and rates of change in those levels between 1985 and 1990 show virtually no correlation. Changes in spending between 1985 and 1990 are decomposed into several components. States with high growth tend to have high growth in tax capacity and high growth in mental health spending as a share of health and welfare spending. Beverly M. Porter, M.A., was a research associate in the Department of Economics at Boston University at the time this article was written.     

Marginal benefit incidence of public health spending: evidence from Indonesian sub-national data

We examine the marginal effects of decentralized public health spending by incorporating estimates of behavioural responses to changes in health spending in benefit incidence analysis. The analysis is based on a panel dataset of 207 Indonesian districts over the period from 2001 to 2004. We show that district public health spending is largely driven by central government transfers, with an elasticity of around 0.9. We find a positive effect of public health spending on utilization of outpatient care in the public sector for the poorest two quartiles. We find no evidence that public expenditures crowd out utilization of private services or household health spending. Our analysis suggests that increased public health spending improves targeting to the poor, as behavioural changes in public health care utilization are pro-poor. Nonetheless, most of the benefits of the additional spending accrued to existing users of services, as initial utilization shares outweigh the behavioural responses.     

精神卫生资源配置与精神疾病服务供给的关系研究

目的 分析2015年中国精神卫生资源配置和重性精神疾病管理相关服务的关系,分析当前中国精神卫生服务存在的缺陷,为精神卫生人力资源配置提供依据.方法 使用Excel整理分析《中国卫生统计年鉴2016》和学者相关研究结果中的数据,采用SPSS分析精神卫生资源和服务供给之间的相关性.结果 2015年中国内地每10万人口精神科...     

Death in Scotland and nineteen years of resource allocation.

The Scottish Health Authorities Revenue Equalisation (SHARE) programme has been operating since the late 1970s to allocate health services money on a more equitable basis between health boards. It is about to be replaced by a new method, however. The trends in per capita spending on healthcare services from the commencement of SHARE are examined here, as are changes in the relative experiences of mortality, in the 12 Scottish mainland health board regions. Every health board has committed increases in spending in real terms on services for their residents. Concurrently, the differential in boards' spending on their residents has reduced due to the effects of the SHARE process. Notwithstanding the global increase in expenditure on healthcare services, and the reduction in inequalities in resources between regions, inequality in the experience of mortality has increased within Scotland. The most important public health factors influencing mortality lie outside the control of healthcare providers.     

The Effects of Medicaid Eligibility on Mental Health Services and Out‐of‐Pocket Spending for Mental Health Services

Objective

Millions of low‐income Americans will gain health insurance through Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. This study assesses the impact of previous Medicaid expansions on mental health services utilization and out‐of‐pocket spending.

Data Sources

Secondary data from the 1998–2011 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component merged with National Health Interview Survey and state Medicaid eligibility rules data.

Study Design

Instrumental variables regression models were used to estimate the impact of expanded Medicaid eligibility on health insurance coverage, mental health services utilization, and out‐of‐pocket spending for mental health services.

Data Extraction Methods

Person‐year files were constructed including adults ages 21–64 under 300 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.

Principal Findings

Medicaid expansions significantly increased health insurance coverage and reduced out‐of‐pocket spending on mental health services for low‐income adults. Effects of expanded Medicaid eligibility on out‐of‐pocket spending were strongest for adults with psychological distress. Expanding Medicaid eligibility did not significantly increase the use of mental health services.

Conclusions

Previous Medicaid eligibility expansions did not substantially increase mental health service utilization, but they did reduce out‐of‐pocket mental health care spending.     

The National Mental Health Plan in Chile: 10 years of experience]

Dealing with mental health problems is undoubtedly an increasingly important public health responsibility around the world. In Chile, because of the changes in the epidemiological profile of the population, the lifetime prevalence of mental and behavioral disorders has reached 36%. In response, the Ministry of Health of Chile, through its Mental Health Unit, prepared the National Plan for Mental Health and Psychiatry. The Plan establishes objectives, strategies, and steps to improve the well-being and mental health of Chileans. This piece describes the model of care for mental health and psychiatry used in Chile's public health care system, analyzes the main difficulties encountered and the achievements made in the 10 years that the Plan has been in place, and makes recommendations for improving the Plan. Over the 10-year period, the new model for mental health and psychiatry has managed to make a place for itself in the public health care system. Indicators show that the beneficiaries of the public health care system in Chile now have greater access to mental health services than before the new model of community care was established, have broader health care coverage, and receive better quality services.