Policy tools for building health education and preventive counseling into managed care

Six policy tools for building health education and preventive counseling in to managed care are presented, and the opportunities and barriers to implem enting each are described based largely on managed care plans operating in California in 1998. The six policy tools include (1) covering health educat ion and preventive counseling as defined benefits, (2) increasing access to and use of health promotion programs, (3) incorporating health education i nto disease-management programs, (4) defining quality performance measures for health education and preventive counseling, (5) defining performance ta rgets and guarantees for health education and preventive counseling to hold health plans accountable for providing these services, and (6) building co llaboration between public health agencies and managed care on public healt h education and health promotion. For each of these, the policy option is d escribed, examples of current practice are provided, and the problems and l imitations associated with each are discussed.