Improving Medicaid care for people with serious mental illness
Addressing Gaps in the Evidence to Improve Quality and Value of Serious Mental Illness Care in Medicaid
Researchers will use Medicaid information to find ways to improve care and reduce harms for adults living with serious mental illnesses like bipolar disorder.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rand Corporation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Santa Monica, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11262315 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project looks at Medicaid records and state policies to understand which care practices actually help people like me who have serious mental illness. The team will link person- and neighborhood-level data to common quality measures, use outcomes such as hospital visits, suicidality, and homelessness, and study how telehealth changes care and costs. They will model how different policies and quality measures affect health, social outcomes, and state budgets, with attention to people facing social disadvantage. The goal is to produce findings policymakers and clinics can use to change Medicaid services for better results.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults enrolled in Medicaid who have serious mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder or psychotic disorders are the primary group whose care the project focuses on.
Not a fit: People who are not covered by Medicaid, children, or those with only mild or short-term mental health symptoms are unlikely to be directly affected by this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could lead to Medicaid policies and care practices that improve mental health outcomes, lower avoidable hospitalizations, and reduce homelessness among people with serious mental illness.
How similar studies have performed: Healthcare and Medicaid data studies have shaped policy before, but combining telehealth effects, quality measurement gaps, and social outcomes specifically for serious mental illness is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Santa Monica, United States
- Rand Corporation — Santa Monica, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Horvitz-Lennon, Marcela V — Rand Corporation
- Study coordinator: Horvitz-Lennon, Marcela V
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.