Manag Care Interface. 2002 Jan; 15(1): 86-9.

Alternative medicine networks: build or buy?

Iverson CR.

The inclusion of alternative medicine benefits by health plans is on the rise nationwide, but how does a health plan decide whether to build its own network or to carve one out? The alternative health community has existed largely in isolation from orthodox medicine and the evolution of managed care. As such, the issues in determining whether to build or buy an alternative medicine network differ from some of those related to the other health care specialties that are traditionally evaluated for carve-outs.