Insurance Status and Continuity for Young Adults With First-Episode Psychosis

Insurance status and continuity may affect access to and quality of care. The authors characterized patterns of and changes in insurance status over 1 year among people with first-episode psychosis (FEP), comparing insurance patterns with adults of similar age in the general population.

Longitudinal data on insurance status and predictors of insurance status among adults with FEP were obtained from RAISE-ETP (Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode-Early Treatment Program) study participants with complete 1-year data (N=288). The frequencies of insurance status and transitions are presented. Bivariate comparisons were used to assess the impact of the comprehensive coordinated care intervention in RAISE-ETP on insurance changes. These data were compared with contemporaneous longitudinal data in the 2011 Medical Expenditures Panel Study.

The RAISE-ETP experimental intervention did not significantly change insurance status. At baseline, levels of uninsurance (47%) and public insurance (31%) were higher among RAISE-ETP participants than among a similar age group in the general public (29% and 13%, respectively). Insurance transitions were common among people with FEP, although 79% of those with public insurance at baseline also had public insurance at 1 year. Of studied RAISE-ETP participants, 60% had a period of uninsurance during the year studied.

Compared with a national sample, people with FEP were more likely to use public insurance but still had high persistence of 12-month uninsurance. That over half of the RAISE-ETP participants had a period of uninsurance suggests that more research is needed on whether these periods affect treatment continuity and medication adherence.