Prevention and managed care: opportunities for managed care organizations, purchasers of health care, and public health agencies.

The rapid, extensive changes in the health-care system in the United States provide public health agencies with new opportunities for prevention-oriented relationships with the private health-care system. Managed care organizations (MCOs) are rapidly becoming a major source of health care for the beneficiaries of both employer-funded care and of the publicly funded programs, Medicaid and Medicare. In addition, MCOs represent organized care systems that often focus their efforts on defined populations and are accountable for desired outcomes, including prevention activities. In recognition of the potential role of managed care in prevention, in January 1995, CDC formed a Managed Care Working Group to develop recommendations for CDC for fostering the incorporation of prevention practices into managed care. This report presents these recommendations and approaches for their implementation, as well as background and case examples.