This study used data from the 2011 Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX) - a 20% random sample, stratified by state. Dependent variables included type of telemental health service, telemental health user status, and number of telemental health claims per 100 target population members per year. Primary explanatory variables included telehealth policies (e.g., provision of facility fee; restrictions on provision of services by out-of-state providers) and rurality. Covariates in multivariate models included beneficiary characteristics such as age, gender, race, and severity of mental health diagnosis, as well as effects of state. Analyses determined whether the relationships between telehealth policies and use rates differed depending on whether beneficiaries lived in rural versus urban areas.

Publications

• Telebehavioral Health Use Among Rural Medicaid Beneficiaries: Relationships With Telehealth Policies
  Journal Article
  Rural Telehealth Research Center
  Date: 09/2020
  This study assesses policy levers potentially supporting sustained use of telehealth services. Among rural Medicaid fee-for-service beneficiaries with behavioral health needs, engaging patients through informed consent within provider settings that receive facility fees may facilitate improved access to telebehavioral health services.