LAUSR

Key Points Question What is the proportion and degree of total spending directly associated with mental health conditions compared with spending on other non–mental health conditions among Medicare patients with mental illness? Findings In this cohort study of 4 358 975 Medicare beneficiaries, patients with serious mental illness spent substantially more on medical services for physical conditions than patients with other common mental health disorders or no known mental illness. Among Medicare beneficiaries, 4.2% of total Medicare spending went to mental health services and 8.5% went to additional medical spending associated with mental illness, for a total of 12.7% of total spending associated with mental health disorders. Meaning In this study, having a mental health disorder was associated with substantially higher spending on for other medical conditions, which increased total spending associated with mental health disorders 3-fold.