title: Spending for specialized mental health treatment in The VA: 1995-2001.
abstract: The mid-1990s saw dramatic changes in mental health care in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the largest provider of such care in the United States. Spending for specialized inpatient mental health care fell 21 percent from 1995 to 2001, while spending for specialized outpatient care rose 63 percent. The shift from inpatient to outpatient care was accompanied by rapid increases in outpatient medication costs. Overall, the VA reduced the average cost (per VA user) of specialized mental health care by 22 percent while it increased the number of users of these services by 35 percent.
authors.affiliation: Health Economics Resource Center, Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Menlo Park, California, USA.
authors.forename: Shuo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Todd H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: Paul G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Barnett
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003625:Data Collection; D017048:Health Care Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D005102:Health Expenditures / Q000706:statistics & numerical data / Q000639:trends*; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014481:United States; D014493:United States Department of Veterans Affairs