Financing the care of the mentally ill under Medicare and Medicaid.

Abstract

Medicare and Medicaid have been in effect for more than three years. This analysis endeavors to assess the impact of these programs on care of the poor and mentally ill aged persons. A significant finding is that Medicare and Medicaid have significantly improved the care of elderly psychiatric patients. Variations and limitations among the states are discussed.

Ruth Irelan Knee: Influencing Progress in Mental Health

“…Access to mental health treatment facilities was expanding between the late 1940s and 1960s. As an administrator of the Mental Health Project Grant's program under Title V of the Mental Health Act, Ruth played an important role in influencing the increase of local access to mental health treatment that could be observed during the decades following passage of the above program (Rice, Knee, & Conwell, 1970).…”

“…In addition, there were over 500 partial hospitalization services, mostly day hospitals. Funds for the construction and/or staffing of 351 comprehensive community mental health centers had been awarded by 1969 (Rice et al, 1970(Rice et al, , p. 2247).…”

Public health aspects of mental health: the last 75 years of the American Journal of Public Health.

“…'5 From the beginning, there has been an emphasis on primary prevention," 2"1619 secondary prevention (early intervention), 20 times, a cyclic phenomenon.3 30'3' Insurance and financing of care for mental disorder has been a popular Journal topic over the last quarter century.321' Evaluation and cost efficacy has followed closely on the heels of these fiscal concerns. [42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52][53] Initiated with the best of intentions, the Child Guidance Movement, begun in the 1920s, warns us about the fallacy of starting broad-based programs based in theory rather than on empirical facts.…”