As Optum was the largest MBHO in the nation during our study period, we believe that Optum enrollees are representative of the MBHO population overall.

For a period of time, EAPs and MBHOs competed directly in the workplace, with the MBHO vetoing EAP referral decisions.

The dates of MBHO implementation spanned the decade, although a great deal of activity occurred early in the 1990s (see Table 1).

For many MH professionals the negative consequences of the advent of the MBHO have far outweighed the purported benefits.

Our study is also limited in including data from only one MB HO, although Optum was the largest MBHO in the United States during the study period.

During the early 1990s, attempts to gauge MBHO quality relied upon two things:

It was a solely clinically driven MBHO delivery with not only immediate access, but outreach to increase use of behavioral services.

It is also the first peer-reviewed original research to apply administrative data from a large MBHO to investigate benefit design changes associated with MHPAEA.

The MBHO accreditation will look at screening programs--ensuring that patients are screened adequately and then properly treated for behavioral health problems.

We analyzed data from a large national managed behavioral healthcare organization (MBHO) that provides EAP services.

These include a lack of MBHO and HMO reimbursement for the DCS care management services and a lack of BHPs trained to provide behavioral health care in primary care settings.

With any MBHO, there will be another layer of administration, which providers often find intrusive.