Mental Health: An Insurance Industry Perspective
No group of stakeholders wields greater influence over patient access to medicines than payers making reimbursement and formulary decisions. Even in a time of policy upheaval in Washington, health plans must make sure members get the medicines they need. Insurers say they’re committed to this role when it comes to mental health conditions, which affect one in five American adults. And they say their commitment won’t change regardless of how the policy landscape may shift in Washington. In more than 15 hours of interviews with researchers at inVentiv Health, executives at managed care organizations covering more than 59 million lives talked about issues that are top of mind for patients, including medication access and psychiatric care. They understand the requirements to manage mental health conditions at parity with other physical health conditions. But their determination to solve problems goes beyond parity. The following report documents payers’ views on the obstacles to effective mental health coverage and how to overcome them.