Managed Care Trends | Where Are We Headed?
Many people who talk about managed care don’t realize that it has actually been undergoing a bit of a renaissance since the late 1980s - and has existed conceptually since the ‘30s. Since the late ‘80s, MCOs have progressed through several phases: Phase 1: Using utilization review and pre-admission certification to manage access to care. Phase 2: The addition of fee-for-service networks and managing benefits. Phase 3: Shift from utilization review to utilization management with an emphasis on the ‘appropriateness’ of care as well as the care setting. Phase 4: The current phase of MCO development, which has only started in the last couple of years, looks at establishing a continuum of services, lessening the tendency for providers to operate in ‘silos’ which has been the dominant structure of healthcare in the U.S. for years.