KFF Health News (10/20, Leys) reports, “Companies running private Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans inaccurately list many mental health professionals as being available to treat the plans’ members, a new federal watchdog report says.” Investigators with the HHS’ Office of Inspector General “allege that some insurers effectively set up ‘ghost networks’ of psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals who purportedly have agreed to treat patients covered by the publicly financed Medicare and Medicaid plans.” The report “found that 55% of mental health professionals listed as in-network by Medicare Advantage plans were not providing such care to any of the plans’ members. The figure was 28% for Medicaid managed care plans.” The report “recommends government administrators make more use of medical billing data to confirm whether health professionals listed as in-network are providing care to patients covered by private Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans.”
Related Links:
— “Private Medicare, Medicaid Plans Exaggerate In-Network Mental Health Options, Watchdogs Say,”Tony Leys, KFF Health News , October 20, 2025