Medicaid ACOs on MH care outcomes for Massachusetts children to be examined

Abstract

A University of Massachusetts Amherst public health researcher has been awarded a five‐year, $2.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to examine the impact of Medicaid accountable care organizations (ACOs) on the quality and outcomes of behavioral/mental health care for children in Massachusetts, a news release stated. ACOs are the value‐based health care delivery model designed to reduce Medicare and Medicaid costs while improving coordination and quality of care. “Fundamental changes in health care are needed to address socioeconomic and racial/ethnic disparities in behavioral health care quality and outcomes for children in vulnerable populations,” the grant summary states. In the past decade, the prevalence of mental health disorders among children has climbed in Massachusetts, said lead investigator Sarah Goff, M.D., Ph.D., a practicing pediatrician and internist and associate professor/chair of health promotion and policy in the UMass Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences. The researchers will use an innovative mixed methods approach to investigate how the launching of 17 new Medicaid ACOs in Massachusetts in 2018 may have impacted mental health care for children. Findings from the study are expected to inform providers, payers and policymakers responsible for the care of vulnerable populations of children with mental health disorders.