201. Patients' Reasons for Using Out-of-Network Mental and General Medical Health Providers.
- Author
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Busch, Susan H. and Kyanko, Kelly
- Subjects
MENTAL health services ,HEALTH care reform ,MEDICAL personnel ,CULTURAL competence ,GOVERNMENT policy - Abstract
Objective: The authors sought to assess why patients use out-of-network health care providers and whether patients' reasons differ for mental and general medical health providers. Methods: In a national Internet survey of commercial plan enrollees (N=713) who used an out-of-network provider, participants indicated whether 12 reasons were "important" (vs. "not applicable" or "not important") in their decision to see an out-of-network provider. Results: Reasons for using out-of-network care were multifactorial. Six reasons were similarly important, including the three most-cited reasons: convenient location (66% vs. 69% for mental vs. general medical health, respectively), higher quality (65% vs. 69%), and affordability (70% vs. 71%). Reasons more commonly cited for using out-of-network mental health care were that in-network providers were not taking new patients (34% vs. 24%), confidentiality (33% vs. 19%), cultural competence (33% vs. 23%), and inaccurate in-network provider directories (30% vs. 22%). Conclusions: The most common reasons for using out-of-network care were cited with similar frequency for both mental health and general medical health providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
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