Evaluation of Case Management Techniques for Implementation Across the Military Health System
Semester
The cost of healthcare in the United States continues to increase. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) provides healthcare for a large population of active duty and retired personnel and their dependents. Healthcare consumed nearly 9% of the total DoD budget in 2011 and is expected to increase to 12% by 2013. Maintaining the health of active duty and retired service members and their families is crucial for national defense and operations. At the same time, the DoD must find ways to counteract the increasing share of its budget going to healthcare without sacrificing quality and outcomes.
The Capstone workshop team, based on initial research and analysis completed by the IIP team, conducted research on best practices, and data on the Top 10,000 costliest MHS beneficiaries. As with all government agencies, the MHS was faced with the challenge of cutting a significant portion of their budget over the next few years to help alleviate the Nation's debt crisis. However, given the MHS's unique situation of providing care for yesterday and today's warriors and their families, cutting costs should not come at the expense of the care America's Servicemen and women receive. The question therefore remains: What are the most effective methods of care management (including catastrophic case management), and which best fit the military population being served?