A broader vision for managed care, Part 3: The scope and determinants of community benefits.

Managed care plans have been encouraged to address the health of the communities in which they are located. This paper presents the first nationally representative portrait of health maintenance organizations' (HMOs') community benefit activities, based on survey data from 1999. We found that HMOs were engaged in a wider variety of community involvements than were identified in past legal decisions and legislation defining "community benefits" for health plans. The scope of community activities was broader for HMOs that enroll Medicaid recipients, are influenced by local business leaders, operate under nonprofit ownership, and are located in states with community benefit reporting laws.