Studies in the Area of Psychiatry Reported from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) (The Role of Behavioral Health Diagnoses In Adverse Selection)

2020 SEP 29 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Data detailed on Psychiatry have been presented. According to news reporting originating from Los Angeles, California, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Adverse selection in medical insurance is well documented; however, little is known about the role of behavioral health. This study’s objective was to examine the probability of being enrolled in the lowest-deductible plan among commercially insured patients, according to psychiatric diagnosis.”

Funders for this research include National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences grant.

Our news editors obtained a quote from the research from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), “This cross-sectional study used 2012-2013 benefit design and plan choice data linked to 2011-2012 behavioral health claims for a national sample of individuals (N=116,975) and different family types (couple with at least one dependent, N=59,237; single subscriber with at least one dependent, N=19,066; couple with no dependents, N=40,917) with Optum, UnitedHealth Group ‘carve-in’ plans. Analyses included multiple logistic regressions examining whether the individual (or family) was enrolled in the plan with the lowest deductible as functions of whether individuals (or family members) had any psychiatric diagnosis, the number of psychiatric diagnoses they had, and whether they had individual major psychiatric diagnoses. For individuals, having any psychiatric diagnosis was associated with an increase of about 10% in the probability of being enrolled in the lowest-deductible plan compared with having no psychiatric diagnosis (44.9% vs. 40.7%, p=0.04). Each additional psychiatric diagnosis increased this probability by three percentage points (p=0.02). A diagnosis of depression was associated with the largest increase. When individuals were offered the choice of a health insurance plan, having a prior psychiatric diagnosis (specifically depression) was associated with being enrolled in the lowest-deductible plans.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Individuals with depression may anticipate future expenditures and select plans accordingly.”

For more information on this research see: The Role of Behavioral Health Diagnoses In Adverse Selection. Psychiatric Services, 2020;71(9):920-927. Psychiatric Services can be contacted at: Amer Psychiatric Publishing, Inc, 800 Maine Ave SW, Suite 900, Washington, DC 20024, USA.

The news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Michelle S. Keller, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Fielding School of Public Health, Dept. of Health Policy and Management, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States. Additional authors for this research include Susan L. Ettner, Haiyong Xu and Francisca Azocar.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201900354. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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