UCLA Center for Health Policy Research

This report examines the extent to which managed care organizations (MCOs) that serve

Medicaid beneficiaries are promoting effective management, control and prevention of sexually

transmitted diseases (STDs) among their enrollees—and whether these organizations’ policies

correspond with the actual practices of the primary care providers in their networks.

In 1996 alone, 15.3 million new STD cases were reported in the United States, and the

prevalence of these infections is even higher due to the accumulation of viral non-treatable STD

cases. Beyond the suffering caused directly by a particular disease, STDs can lead to infertility,

pregnancy complications, cancer, and a greater susceptibility to HIV infection, among other

complications. The advent and dramatic growth of Medicaid managed care plans increases the

importance of MCOs’ policies and programs to combat STDs, particularly since the Medicaid

population of mostly low-income women and children includes a large proportion of ind ividuals

who are considered at higher risk for STDs.