Managed care has had a significant impact on the delivery of behavioral health services. This has influenced the way that the behavioral health industry conducts business. This week's research paper will focus on the business of behavioral health.

Read the following articles from the EBSCO host database:

Covall, M. (2005, January). Medicare prospective payment comes to psychiatric hospitals. Behavioral Health Management, 25(1), 54-57.

Oss, M. E. (2005). What's next for managed behavioral health. (Cover story). Behavioral Health Management, 25(6), 11-14

You should also search the Internet to further learn about additional factors that influence the business model of behavioral health.

To complete this research paper, you will need to include an introduction and conclusion section as well as a title page and reference section. The paper should adhere to the following guidelines:

• The length of the paper should be 6 to 8 double-spaced pages (not including the title and reference pages).

• The main sections should have a:

o Title page
o Introduction
o Body of the paper (with subheadings)
o Conclusion
o Reference page(s)

• The paper must use the APA format for citing sources and references.

Your paper introduction (one page) should include the following points:

• An overview of the research paper

• The purpose or objective of the research paper

The body of the paper (four to six pages) should address each of the following topics using information learned in the course, in combination with outside references:

• In today's healthcare scenario, are behavioral health services viewed as a profession? How? Is behavioral health service different from the rest of the healthcare industry? If yes, how? If no, why?

• Describe the main reasons why behavioral healthcare may be reimbursed differently than any other healthcare services, in general. What factors need to be addressed based on the population served? Utilize your course and text readings to support your answers.

• What are some of the challenges faced by behavioral healthcare providers who operate in a managed care environment? What are some of the areas of conflict between behavioral healthcare providers and managed care? Which amongst these conflict areas do you think is the most crucial, and requires immediate attention, and why?

• Will the managed care environment be able to support the services required to provide effective residential treatment? In your opinion, what will a residential treatment facility need to continue providing effective treatment while still being able to get reimbursed, especially through Medicaid or Medicare services? (You can use the the CMS.gov Web site to get more information on these topics.)
Your conclusion (one page) should include the following points:

• What conclusions can you draw from your research that would demonstrate the role played by managed care in the behavioral health industry?

• If you were a manager of a behavioral healthcare organization, what changes would you bring to your ways of doing business to meet the consumers' needs while still being able to be reimbursed for the services provided to the consumer?