title: Inpatient treatment of comorbid psychiatric and substance abuse disorders: comparison of public sector and privately insured populations.
abstract: Public health delivery systems are increasingly compared to private systems as policymakers continue to focus on reducing the costs of care. However, there are very few studies comparing trends in utilization and cost between public and private providers. This study examines discharge abstract records for VA patients and insurance claims data for a national sample of privately insured individuals to investigate trends in inpatient utilization and costs for dually diagnosed individuals in these two systems. Although the substantial differences in the populations treated could account for the differences in these measures across systems, this study is useful in illustrating the possibilities and limitations of system comparisons.
authors.affiliation: Connecticut-Massachusetts VA Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, USA. Douglas.Leslie@Yale.edu
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Leslie
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rosenheck
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017831:Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry); D005260:Female; D006264:Health Benefit Plans, Employee / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017721:Hospital Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007358:Insurance, Psychiatric / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000191:economics / Q000628:therapy*; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017149:Private Sector / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017150:Public Sector / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000191:economics / Q000628:therapy*; D014481:United States