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Study questions economic benefit of disease management programs

Case Management Weekly, August 10, 2005

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With businesses and health plans adopting disease management programs to keep medical costs down, researchers question whether such programs make a difference. According to a recent study, disease management programs may not be keeping organizations' return on investment (ROI) as healthy as they hoped. The study-published by Cornell University and Thomson Medstat-revealed that disease management programs for patients suffering depression, diabetes, and asthma had mixed results, while programs for congestive heart failure or multiple illnesses led to positive ROI. The study's lead researcher said more conclusive analyses must be performed surrounding disease management ROI, as little has been done thus far. The study comes at a time of record growth for the disease management industry. As a result of the nation's government and businesses embracement of the use of disease management programs to control healthcare spending, revenues for the industry have increased from $85 million in 1997 to $600 billion in 2002.

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