• 13 May 2009

SAMHSA Spending Estimates

Accounting for mental health and substance abuse treatment spending nationwide.

Challenge:  Historically, policymakers lacked comprehensive information on spending for the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders. Fragmented data on who was providing services and how these services were financed posed obstacles in formulating national policies to improve quality of care and access to treatment.

Solution:  Researchers from Thomson Reuters partnered with analysts of the Actuarial Research Corporation, the Lewin Group, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA, who funded the work) to remedy this information gap.  Thomson Reuters has played a lead role since 1996 in compiling data, developing estimation methodologies, and generating publications that address nation-wide spending on mental health and substance abuse treatment and reveal system-wide issues.

Results:  The SAMHSA Spending Estimates inform public policy decisions.  Thomson Reuters researchers have helped SAMHSA to publicize the declining share of health care spending allocated to MH/SA treatment (Mark et al., 2007a), the rapid increase in MH spending on prescription drugs (Mark et al., 2007b), the declining share of MH/SA spending on hospital and residential care (Mark et al., 2007b and c), and the lack of parity in SA treatment coverage by private insurance as compared with coverage for other serious medical illnesses (Gabel et al., 2007). These reports are vital in shaping policies aimed at making "a life in the community for everyone."

References:

Gabel J, Whitmore H, Pickreign J, Levit K, Coffey R, Vandivort-Warren R. Substance abuse benefits: Still limited after all these years. Health Affairs, exclusive web release, June 7, 2007.

Mark T, Levit K, Coffey RM, McKusick D, Harwood H, King E, Bouchery E, Genuardi J, Ryan K, Vandivort-Warren R, Buck JA. National expenditures for mental health services and substance abuse treatment, 1993-2003  SAMHSA Publication No. SMA 07-4227. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Rockville, MD, 2007a. Online August 29, 2007. http://www.samhsa.gov/spendingestimates/toc.aspx. Mark TL, Levit KR, Coffey RM, Buck JA, Vandivort-Warren R, and the SAMHSA Spending Estimates Team. Mental Health Treatment Expenditure Trends, 1986-2003.  Psychiatric Services, 2007b Jul-Aug; 26(4):1118-28.

Mark TL, Levit KR, Coffey RM, Vandivort-Warren R, Buck JA, and the SAMHSA Spending Estimates Team. Substance Abuse Treatment Expenditure Trends, 1986-2003.  Health Affairs, 2007c Jul-Aug; 26(4):1118-28.