Medicare's Discriminatory Coverage Policies For Substance Use Disorders

Medicare’s Discriminatory Coverage Policies For Substance Use Disorders

Health Affairs June 22, 2021
Deborah Steinberg, Ellen Weber, Abigail Woodworth

Medicare covered about 62 million lives in 2020. While often the standard setter for other health care financing systems, Medicare falls far behind the coverage standards of most private and employer-based insurers and Medicaid plans when it comes to substance use disorder services. Medicare essentially covers the least and most intensive services—office-based outpatient counseling and inpatient hospitalizations—for substance use disorder treatment, leaving beneficiaries who need intermediate levels of care without the services they need to recover. This antiquated and discriminatory financing system imposes tremendous burden on beneficiaries and the health care system.

What If Medicare Covered Other Conditions Like It Covers Substance Use Disorder Treatment?

Imagine if Medicare only covered cancer treatment for stage 1...

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Topics: CMS, Govt Agencies, Insurance, Medicare, Patient / Consumer, Provider

2021-06-22T20:34:47-04:00

Medicare’s Discriminatory Coverage Policies For Substance Use Disorders

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