Health Affairs

Posting date: March 29, 2005

This Article Reprint (PDF) HTML Version Submit a response to this article Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Comments are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services E-mail this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My Personal Archive Download to Citation Manager Reprints & Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Mark, T. L. Articles by MHSA Spending Estimates Team, a. t. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Mark, T. L. Articles by MHSA Spending Estimates Team, a. t. Related Collections Access To Care Insurance Coverage Managed Care - Mental Health Business Of Health Mental Health/Substance Abuse Chronic Care Health Spending Consumer Issues

Health Affairs, 10.1377/hlthaff.w5.133
Copyright © 2005 by Project HOPE

Web Exclusives

U.S. Spending For Mental Health And Substance Abuse Treatment, 1991-2001

Tami L. Mark ^1*, Rosanna M. Coffey ², Rita Vandivort-Warren ³, Hendrick J. Harwood ⁴, Edward C. King ⁵, and the MHSA Spending Estimates Team ⁶

¹ Tami Mark is associate director, outcomes research and econometrics, at Medstat in Washington, D.C.
² Rosanna Coffey is a Medstat vice president.
³ Rita Vandivort-Warren is a senior policy analyst at the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), in Rockville, Maryland.
⁴ Hendrick Harwood is a vice president of the Lewin Group in Falls Church, Virginia.
⁵ Edward King is a research analyst at the Actuarial Research Corporation in Columbia, Maryland.
⁶ Members of the MHSA Spending Estimates Team are acknowledged at the end of the paper.

^*Corresponding author.

Abstract

Spending for mental health and substance abuse (MHSA) treatment in the United States totaled $104 billion in 2001, representing 7.6 percent of all health care spending. The nominal MHSA annual spending growth rate from 1991 to 2001 was 5.6 percent, almost one percentage point below the growth rate for all health care (6.5 percent). During this period, Medicaid has increased to be the largest payer of mental health care, with prescription drugs the fastest-growing spending component. Private insurance payment for substance abuse actually dropped in real dollars, increasing the public share of substance abuse spending.

Key Words: Access To Care, Business Of Health, Chronic Care, Consumer Issues, Insurance Coverage, Managed Care - Mental Health, Mental Health/Substance Abuse, Health Spending

                      What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Roehrig, G. Miller, C. Lake, and J. Bryant National Health Spending By Medical Condition, 1996-2005 Health Aff., March 1, 2009; 28(2): w358 - w367. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. L. Barry and J. L. Sindelar Equity In Private Insurance Coverage For Substance Abuse: A Perspective On Parity Health Aff., November 1, 2007; 26(6): w706 - w716. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. L. Mark, K. R. Levit, R. Vandivort-Warren, R. M. Coffey, J. A. Buck, and the SAMHSA Spending Estimates Team Trends In Spending For Substance Abuse Treatment, 1986-2003 Health Aff., July 1, 2007; 26(4): 1118 - 1128. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. Cunningham, K. McKenzie, and E. F. Taylor The struggle to provide community-based care to low-income people with serious mental illnesses. Health Aff., May 1, 2006; 25(3): 694 - 705. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]