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The effects of integrating behavioral health into primary care for low-income children.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the impact of TEAM UP-an initiative that fully integrates behavioral health services into pediatric primary care in three Boston-area Community Health Centers (CHCs)-on health care utilization and costs. DATA SOURCES:2014-2017 claims data on continuously enrolled children from a Massachusetts Medicaid managed care plan. STUDY DESIGN:We used a difference-in-difference approach with inverse probability of treatment weights to compare outcomes in children receiving primary care at TEAM UP CHCs versus comparison site CHCs, in the pre (2014-2016q2)- versus post (2016q3-2017)-intervention periods. Utilization outcomes included emergency department visits, inpatient admissions, primary care visits, and outpatient/professional visits (all cause and those with mental health (MH) diagnoses). Cost outcomes included total cost of care (inpatient, outpatient, professional, pharmacy). We further assessed differential effects by baseline MH diagnosis. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS:After 1.5 years, TEAM UP was associated with a relative increase in the rate of primary care visits (IRR = 1.15, 95% CI 1.04-1.27, or 115 additional visits/1000 patients/quarter), driven by children with a MH diagnosis at baseline. There was no significant change in avoidable health care utilization or cost. CONCLUSIONS:Expanding the TEAM UP behavioral health integration model to other sites has the potential to improve primary care engagement in low-income children with MH needs.

SUBMITTER: Cole MB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6863244 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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The effects of integrating behavioral health into primary care for low-income children.

Cole Megan B MB Qin Qiuyuan Q Sheldrick Radley C RC Morley Debra S DS Bair-Merritt Megan H MH

Health services research 20191201 6

<h4>Objective</h4>To evaluate the impact of TEAM UP-an initiative that fully integrates behavioral health services into pediatric primary care in three Boston-area Community Health Centers (CHCs)-on health care utilization and costs.<h4>Data sources</h4>2014-2017 claims data on continuously enrolled children from a Massachusetts Medicaid managed care plan.<h4>Study design</h4>We used a difference-in-difference approach with inverse probability of treatment weights to compare outcomes in children ...[more]

PMID: 31742687

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Project description:ImportanceAn increasing diversity of children's health coverage options under the US Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, together with uncertainty regarding reauthorization of the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) beyond 2017, merits renewed attention on the quality of these options for children.ObjectiveTo compare health care access, quality, and cost outcomes by insurance type (Medicaid, CHIP, private, and uninsured) for children in households with low to moderate incomes.Design, setting, and participantsA repeated cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from the 2003, 2007, and 2011-2012 US National Surveys of Children's Health, comprising 80,655 children 17 years or younger, weighted to 67 million children nationally, with household incomes between 100% and 300% of the federal poverty level. Multivariable logistic regression models compared caregiver-reported outcomes across insurance types. Analysis was conducted between July 14, 2014, and May 6, 2015.ExposuresInsurance type was ascertained using a caregiver-reported measure of insurance status and each household's poverty status (percentage of the federal poverty level).Main outcomes and measuresCaregiver-reported outcomes related to access to primary and specialty care, unmet needs, out-of-pocket costs, care coordination, and satisfaction with care.ResultsAmong the 80,655 children, 51,123 (57.3%) had private insurance, 11,853 (13.6%) had Medicaid, 9554 (18.4%) had CHIP, and 8125 (10.8%) were uninsured. In a multivariable logistic regression model (with results reported as adjusted probabilities [95% CIs]), children insured by Medicaid and CHIP were significantly more likely to receive a preventive medical (Medicaid, 88% [86%-89%]; P < .01; CHIP, 88% [87%-89%]; P < .01) and dental (Medicaid, 80% [78%-81%]; P < .01; CHIP, 77% [76%-79%]; P < .01) visits than were privately insured children (medical, 83% [82%-84%]; dental, 73% [72%-74%]). Children with all insurance types experienced challenges in access to specialty care, with caregivers of children insured by CHIP reporting the highest rates of difficulty accessing specialty care (28% [24%-32%]), problems obtaining a referral (23% [18%-29%]), and frustration obtaining health care services (26% [23%-28%]). These challenges were also magnified for privately insured children with special health care needs, whose caregivers reported significantly greater problems accessing specialty care (29% [26%-33%]) and frustration obtaining health care services (36% [32%-41%]) than did caregivers of children insured by Medicaid, and a lower likelihood of insurance always meeting the child's needs (63% [60%-67%]) than children insured by Medicaid or CHIP. Caregivers of privately insured children were also significantly more likely to experience out-of-pocket costs (77% [75%-78%]) than were caregivers of children insured by Medicaid (26% [23%-28%]; P < .01) or CHIP (38% [35%-40%]; P < .01).Conclusions and relevanceThis examination of caregiver experiences across insurance types revealed important differences that can help guide future policymaking regarding coverage for families with low to moderate incomes.

Project description:Despite the rising burden of noncommunicable diseases, access to quality decentralized noncommunicable disease services remain limited in many low- and middle-income countries. Here we describe the strategies we employed to drive the process from adaptation to national endorsement and implementation of the 2016 Botswana primary healthcare guidelines for adults. The strategies included detailed multilevel assessment with broad stakeholder inputs and in-depth analysis of local data; leveraging academic partnerships; facilitating development of supporting policy instruments; and embedding noncommunicable disease guidelines within broader primary health-care guidelines in keeping with the health ministry strategic direction. At facility level, strategies included developing a multimethod training programme for health-care providers, leveraging on the experience of provision of human immunodeficiency virus care and engaging health-care implementers early in the process. Through the strategies employed, the country's first national primary health-care guidelines were endorsed in 2016 and a phased three-year implementation started in August 2017. In addition, provision of primary health-care delivery of noncommunicable disease services was included in the country's 11th national development plan (2017-2023). During the guideline development process, we learnt that strong interdisciplinary skills in communication, organization, coalition building and systems thinking, and technical grasp of best-practices in low- and middle-income countries were important. Furthermore, misaligned agendas of stakeholders, exaggerated by a siloed approach to guideline development, underestimation of the importance of having policy instruments in place and coordination of the processes initially being led outside the health ministry caused delays. Our experience is relevant to other countries interested in developing and implementing guidelines for evidence-based noncommunicable disease services.

Dataset Information

The effects of integrating behavioral health into primary care for low-income children.

Publications

The effects of integrating behavioral health into primary care for low-income children.

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