Health Maintenance Organizations: Legislative and Training Implications

Abstract

The Health Maintenance Organization Act of 1973 provides Americans with the opportunity to join prepaid group health plans. HMOs are not a panacea for the ills that beset our health delivery system but their emphasis on health maintenance and preventive interventions will provide new social work practice and student training opportunities. This article reviews and analyzes the major features of the HMO Act. Expanded roles for social work practitioners are discussed and suggestions are made for strengthening social work training programs in order to prepare social work professionals for practice in HMOs and in the health care field.