Health Policy Commons^™

Analysis Of State Laws Permitting Intoxication Exclusions In Insurance Contracts And Their Judicial Enforcement, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Henry Van Dyck, Mandy Bartoshesky, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Policy Brief reviews judicial decisions construing state laws that permit insurers to include intoxication exclusionary clauses in their insurance policies. The cases and state laws examined in this analysis span health, life, disability, accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D), workers compensation, and unemployment insurance. Some variant of the intoxication exclusionary clause appears across all of these products, depending on the state. The widespread nature of such laws has its roots in the 1947 Uniform Accident and Sickness Policy Provision Law (UPPL), a model statute whose broader public policy purpose was to avoid the use of insurance to protect against the …

Managed Care Corporate Failures: An Overview Of Bankruptcy And Insurance Insolvency Procedures, Sara J. Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief examines managed care corporate failures and the legal process. Managed care organizations are corporate hybrids that possess the features of both insurance and health care. As a result, the question of whether the proper legal forum for addressing a failure is the federal bankruptcy process or state insurance insolvency procedures is a complex one. The answer to this question is more than academic: legal protections for purchasers, members, and health care providers differ significantly depending on which legal system is used.

Reasonable Modification Or Fundamental Alteration? Recent Developments In Ada Caselaw And Implications For Behavioral Health Policy, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum, D. Richard Mauery, Alexandra M. Stewart

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This issue brief examines the concept of fundamental alteration under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA); specifically it considers when proposed modifications of public programs under Title II of the ADA will be considered to amount to the type of fundamental alteration that lies beyond judicial power to compel. The issue of when a program change constitutes a fundamental alteration is important in state community integration planning efforts, since these types of changes will require legislative action.

Hipaa's Electronic Transactions Rule: Implications For Behavioral Health Providers, Brian Kamoie

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

On August 17, 2000, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) adopted uniform national standards for electronic health transactions and code sets pursuant to the Administrative Simplification provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). Uniform standards hold the promise of improved efficiency in the health care system through standardized electronic transmission of health information.

Many behavioral health care organizations (e.g., the American Psychiatric Association, the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors, and the National Association of State Alcohol/Drug Abuse Directors) have argued that the Rule's standards are insufficient for behavioral health providers. …

State Eligibility Rules Under Separate State Schip Programs--Implications For Children's Access To Health Care, Sara Rosenbaum, Anne Rossier Markus

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Policy Brief is the fourth in a series of reports1 issued by the George Washington University Center for Health Services Research and Policy that examine the design of separately-administered State Children’s Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP) that is, programs that operate directly under the authority of the federal SCHIP statute rather than expansions of state Medicaid programs.2 These Policy Briefs also consider the implications of states’ design choices for children’s access to health care.

Behavioral Health And Managed Care Contracting Under Schip, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Colleen Sonosky, Karen Shaw, D. Richard Mauery

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Policy Brief examines behavioral health managed care contracting under separately administered State Children's Health Insurance Programs (SCHIP), i.e., programs that operate under the direct authority of Title XXI of the Social Security Act rather than as expansions of Medicaid. Most separate SCHIP programs buy managed care style health insurance for some or most of their enrolled children. Because Title XXI provides states with far greater administrative flexibility than Medicaid with respect to coverage and benefit design, provision of services, and administration of managed care arrangements, studying separate SCHIP managed care products sheds important light on how states might approach …

Welfare Reform Reauthorization In 2002:What Are The Issues For Tribal Communities And Indian Families?, Kathleen A. Maloy

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

American Indian tribes have new options under the 1996 Welfare Reform legislation that created Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), a block grant enacted to replace the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). TANF, which expires in September of this year, provides cash assistance to poor families with children, including poor American Indian Families, and gives tribes the option to design and administer their own family assistance programs following approval of the plan by the Department of Health and Human Services. As Congress considers TANF reauthorization, three new publications prepared for the Kaiser Family Foundation provide insight into the …

An Analysis Of Contracts For The Delivery Of Managed Behavioral Health Care Services In State Correctional Facilities, D. Richard Mauery, Joel B. Teitelbaum, Jeffrey Lerman, Sara J. Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This issue brief, prepared by the George Washington University Center for Health Services Research and Policy (CHSRP), presents an analysis of a sample of contractual agreements entered into by State Departments of Corrections with managed care organizations (MCOs) for the provision of managed behavioral health care services in State prisons. It is part of a series of contract studies undertaken by CHSRP that examine the implications of managed care contracting by public and private sector purchasers for the financing and delivery of behavioral health care services.

The Devolution Of Managed Care Contractor Duties: Analysis And Implications For Public Policy In Managed Behavioral Health Care, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Anne R. Markus, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief analyzes the devolution of the legal duties assumed by managed care organizations (MCOs) in their contracts with group purchasers. Specifically, this brief examines the delegation of MCO contractual duties related to member care and services to individual network providers by comparing the language used in master contracts between purchasers and MCOs with the language contained in agreements with network health care providers who serve members covered under the master contract.

Olmstead V L.C.: Federal Implementation Guidelines, And Analysis Of Recent Cases Regarding Medicaid Coverage Of Long Term Care Services For Persons With Disabilities, Sara J. Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This analysis reviews the key elements of the United States Supreme Court's 1999 decision in Olmstead v L.C. as well as Federal implementation guidelines issued by the United States Department and Human Services. The Olmstead decision interprets the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA," PL 101-336), whose requirements apply to the use of all public funds. However, Medicaid represents the single largest source of public funding for both institutional and non-institutional services for persons with disabilities. As a result, when states expend Medicaid funds on care for persons with disabilities, two independent sets of legal requirements are triggered: those contained in …

A Crosswalk Between The Final Hipaa Privacy Rule And Existing Federal Substance Abuse Confidentiality Requirements, Brian Kamoie, Phyllis Borzi

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief provides an overview of and crosswalk between the Privacy Rule and the federal Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records statute, 42 U.S.C. § 290dd-2, and its implementing regulations at 42 C.F.R. Part 2 ("42 C.F.R. Part 2"). The crosswalk is intended to highlight the differences between the requirements of the Privacy Rule and 42 C.F.R. Part 2. In addition, this Issue Brief addresses the Privacy Rule's applicability to special populations and psychotherapy services provided by substance abuse paraprofessionals.

An Overview Of Legal Developments In Managed Care Caselaw And Selected Case Studies Of Legal Developments In State Contracting For Managed Behavioral Health Services, Sara J. Rosenbaum, D. Richard Mauery, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This analysis provides an overview of recent legal developments in managed care case law. Three types of cases are reviewed: claims brought by managed care enrollees against managed care companies and health plans; cases related either directly or indirectly to managed care and brought by both beneficiaries and managed care organizations against state Medicaid agencies and other public agencies engaged in the purchase of managed care; and cases brought by individual health professionals against managed care organizations.

Care Coordination And Physical And Behavioral Service Integration In Managed Care Contracts: Analysis And Sample Purchasing Specifications, Sara J. Rosenbaum, D. Richard Mauery, Brian Kamoie

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This double Issue Brief on the issue of managed care contracts and care coordination has been prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration as part of a series that examines legal issues in managed care for persons with mental illness and addiction disorders. This Issue Brief is presented in two parts. Part 1 presents an analysis, based on managed care contract data bases developed by CHSRP, of the extent to which public and private group purchasers maintain agreements that specify care coordination as part of the standard of care for persons with co-occurring physical and/or behavioral illnesses …

State Benefit Design Choices Under Schip - Implications For Pediatric Health Care, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Anne Rossier Markus, Colleen Sonosky, Lee Repasch

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This policy brief1 is the second in a series of reports focusing on the design of state SCHIP programs as they near full implementation. It examines the extent to which state agencies adopt conventional insurance norms or adhere to special principles of Medicaid coverage design for children in designing separately administered (or freestanding) SCHIP programs. The issue of coverage design is particularly relevant for children with low prevalence conditions and special health care needs. Increasingly, conventional insurance uses standardized coverage norms to limit coverage and treatment. These standardized norms take the form of across-the-board treatments and exclusions, limited definitions of …

Behavioral Health Benefits For Public Employees: Effect Of Mental Health Parity Legislation, Phyllis Borzi, Sara J. Rosenbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

Recently, the Center for Health Services Research and Policy through a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, examined contracts providing for mental health benefits for state employees in eight states to assess whether legislative attempts to require parity between physical and mental illnesses resulted in noticeable differences in behavioral health benefits for state employees.

We concluded that, except in states that have mandated full parity for some or all types of mental illnesses, behavioral health benefits for state employees have not changed significantly as a result of …

State Schip Design And The Right To Coverage, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Barbara Smith

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

No abstract provided.

Medicare, Managed Care, And Behavioral Health Care, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Barbara Markham Smith

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This issue brief examines Medicare and managed care for Medicare beneficiaries with behavioral health needs. Although only a relatively small proportion of Medicare beneficiaries are enrolled in managed care arrangements at the present time, proposals to expand the use of Medicare managed care can be expected to receive a good deal of attention in the coming years as part of a larger debate over Medicare's long term future. Thus, this issue brief examines the Medicare+Choice (M+C) program from the perspective of Medicare beneficiaries with mental illness and addiction disorders.

Beyond Stigma: What Barriers Actually Affect The Decisions Of Low-Income Families To Enroll In Medicaid?, Jennifer P. Stuber, Kathleen A. Maloy, Sara Rosenbaum, Karen C. Jones

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

No abstract provided.

Coverage Decisions Versus The Quality Of Care: An Analysis Of Recent Erisa Judicial Decisions And Their Implications For Employer-Insured Individuals, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, examines the evolution of this framework for analyzing health claims emanating from the conduct of ERISA-covered managed care arrangements and considers its implications for the provision of treatment for mental illness and addiction disorders. Both studies and anecdotal evidence suggest that managed care companies impose particularly rigorous controls over treatment for mental illness and addiction disorders. It is therefore perhaps not surprising that legal challenges to treatment decisions frequently involve individuals with these conditions. Consequently, to the extent that courts are in fact on the verge of …

An Evaluation Of Agreements Between Managed Care Organizations And Community-Based Mental Illness And Addiction Disorder Treatment And Prevention Providers, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum, D. Richard Mauery, Marcie Zakheim, Michael Golde

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), examines contracts between managed care organizations (MCOs) and community-based providers of mental illness and addiction disorder treatment and prevention services (MI/AD providers). Building upon initial research published in 1997, this brief explores in depth one of the most hidden aspects of managed care: the relationship between the managed care organizations and health care providers.

Designing A Complaint And Grievance System And Other Member Assistance Services Under Medicaid Managed Care, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

Medicaid beneficiaries enrolled in managed care arrangements have two basic sets of procedural protections when benefits are denied. The first set consists of the right to timely and adequate notice of "any action affecting [a] claim" for medical assistance, as well as a fair hearing in the case of any individual "whose claim for medical assistance under the plan is denied or is not acted upon with reasonable promptness." The second is the right to "internal grievance" procedures to "challenge the denial of coverage *** or payment [of medical] assistance." The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) is expected to delineate …

The Americans With Disabilities Act: Implications For Managed Care For Persons With Mental Illness And Addiction Disorders, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum, Robert Silverstein

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief, prepared for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, examines the Americans with Disabilities Act ("the ADA") and its application to managed care. The ADA provides important protections for persons with disabilities who are members of managed care arrangements, regardless of whether their membership is sponsored by an employer, Medicare, or Medicaid or is purchased privately. The interaction between the ADA and managed care is complex, and different issues can arise under publicly and privately sponsored plans.

An Analysis Of Implementation Issues Relating To Chip Cost-Sharing Provisions For Certain Targeted Low Income Children, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Anne Rossier Markus, Dylan Roby

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This analysis, prepared for the Health Care Financing Administration and the Health Resources and Services Administration, examines issues that arise under laws designed to avert excessive cost-sharing in the case of low income families whose children participate in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). High cost-sharing has been shown to significantly affect children’s participation in insurance programs, as well as their utilization of health services. As a result, the Federal CHIP legislation, while permitting cost-sharing under certain circumstances, also places limitations on the total amount of cost-sharing to which families can be exposed for services covered by State CHIP …

Cultural Competence In Medicaid Managed Care Purchasing: General And Behavioral Health Services For Persons With Mental And Addiction-Related Illnesses And Disorders, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief explores cultural competence. Employing the data base from the large-scale Medicaid contract analysis conducted annually by the Center for Health Services Research and Policy (CHSRP) (now CHPR), we examine the approaches that state agencies take in implementing the concept of cultural competence in the design and implementation of their managed care systems.

Selected Key Issues In The Development And Drafting Of Public Managed Behavioral Health Care Carve-Out Contracts, Joel B. Teitelbaum, Sara J. Rosenbaum, William Burgess, Leilani Decourcy

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

The development of managed behavioral health care carve-out contracts covering a discrete subset of benefits available for use by persons with mental health and/or substance abuse disorders poses major challenges for public purchasers. This Issue Brief explores several key issues that arise when drafting such agreements. Many of the issues that arise in the drafting of carve-out agreements will require the public purchaser to resolve basic policy questions well before the drafting of requests for proposals or contracts can proceed.

An Overview Of Medicaid Managed Care Litigation, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum, Christopher Kirby, Linda Priebe, Tal Klement

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

This Issue Brief is intended as one of several in the Managed Behavioral Health Care Issue Brief Series that deals with managed behavioral health care from a purely legal point of view.

Since the enactment of Medicaid in 1965, states have had the option of offering beneficiaries enrollment in managed care arrangements. With the advent of mandatory managed care reaching millions of beneficiaries (including a growing proportion of disabled recipients), the amount and scope of litigation involving Medicaid managed care plans can be expected to grow. A review of the current litigation regarding Medicaid managed care reveals two basic types …

Coverage Decision-Making In Medicaid Managed Care: Key Issues In Developing Managed Care Contracts, Sara J. Rosenbaum, Joel B. Teitelbaum

Health Policy and Management Issue Briefs

Coverage provisions are the most complex part of any managed care contract. This is particularly true for Medicaid agencies, because of important differences between Medicaid and insurance. This Issue Brief identifies general issues that should be addressed as managed care contracts are developed and drafted, and it specifically explores the challenges faced by public purchasers when drafting managed care coverage provisions.