Below is some general information and research about managed care and behavioral health in the United States and in Colorado:

Health Affairs published two articles in 2018 related to managed care entities and whether they actually save states money and/or provide better care than direct fee-for-service between the provider and the state. 

Medicaid Managed Care: Lots Of Unanswered Questions (Part 1)

Medicaid Managed Care: Lots Of Unanswered Questions (Part 2)

The American Society for Public Administration reflected on statistics in the Health Affairs articles here:

(2021)  The privatization of state Medicaid management deserves scrutiny

Health Affairs reported “A five-fold variation in the amount of administrative overhead among states’ managed care plans, and a 37-percentage-point spread in the percentage of MCO revenues that are spent on actual care.” In 2021, the Office of Inspector General reported that many of the 39 states using MCOs had, “Incomplete or inaccurate information for the amounts paid, allowed and billed.”

Report From Mental Health America

Mental Health America released their 2022 State of Mental Health in America. Some of their findings suggest that our current managed care system isn't working effectively be people in Colorado and throughout the US.

Report From the Colorado School of Public Health

The Colorado School of Public Health prepared a Health Care Financing Report on May 28, 2021 suggesting that a multi-payer universal health care system or a single-payer universal health care system would be better than our current system in terms of overall costs and coverage. Read the full report here. You can find a summary of their results here.