Carrum Health expands SUD treatment program to cover nearly all substances
In the United States, approximately one in six working adults has a substance use disorder, and nearly 10% of U.S. workers have a marijuana or stimulant use disorder.
In recognition of this, Carrum Health announced Wednesday that it has expanded its substance use disorder treatment program to include cannabis, sedatives and stimulants. Previously it only covered opioids and alcohol. The company provides value-based specialty care center of excellence solutions to self-insured employers.
Calum's support for the use of marijuana, sedatives and stimulants is based on his framework on opioid and alcohol use. When members seek support, they first go through an intake process with a licensed counselor, who then connects them to the appropriate care provider, which may include inpatient detoxification, residential treatment, intensive outpatient care, or partial hospitalization. Carrum's network of substance abuse providers includes Hazelden Betty Ford, Recovery Centers of America and The Meadows Behavioral Healthcare.
Providers use value-based arrangements, where they are paid based on outcomes such as achieving sobriety or reducing substance use.
“It’s often high-quality providers who are willing to say, ‘Yes, I’m willing to go to a different payment model so that I don’t have to go through the pain of you giving me a hard time and asking me to be discharged earlier than I think is wise, and I’m willing to take on the risk in exchange.’ That’s a big deal,” said Christoph Dankert, chief network officer at Carrum Health. “If you're a substance abuse provider, if a patient has to come back to treatment because they're not doing well, a lot of the responsibility falls on you. This is a big step, and I don't think it's going to work without providers who are so dedicated to their clinical mission.”
Carrum Health starts with alcohol and opioids because these substances make up the majority of people affected by substance use disorders. The company chose to expand its program after listening to customer needs.
“We want to serve all patients with substance abuse issues,” Dankert said. “It's really painful for us when we have patients [who] Finally decided to step up and take the next step and say, “I have a marijuana problem,” but there was nothing we could do to help them. It breaks your heart. So we basically said, we want our process to run smoothly and everything with alcohol and opioids to be resolved. Once we hit that milestone, we said, 'Okay, now we're ready. '”
Carrum's expansion comes at a time when THC potency has increased by 35% since legalization and stimulant prescription volume has increased by 20% year-over-year. At the same time, cocaine and methamphetamine are becoming more deadly due to frequent fentanyl contamination.
To track the success of this expansion, Carrum will follow several key metrics, Dankert said. This includes how many patients come to the company for support, which substances they have questions about, how quickly treatment is started and how effective the treatment is.
In launching the expansion plan, Cullum's ultimate goal is to be able to serve “any patient with a substance abuse problem,” Dankert said.
“Now that we have comprehensive coverage, then [about]how do you reach patients who haven’t yet committed to moving forward? How do you encourage these people? How do you educate these people about these benefits? I think this is the next logical step,” he said.
Carrum also recently announced that the number of people living on its platform has doubled to 6.7 million, an increase of 3.6 million from last year.
Other specialty nursing companies include Lantern and Transcarent.
Photo: Nataliia Nesterenko, Getty Images
