Estimated costs of intervening upon health-related social needs detected in primary care: a simulation study

Sanjay Basu MD PhD1, Seth A. Berkowitz MD MPH2, Caitlin Davis MD MSc3, Connor Drake PhD MPA4,5, Robert L. Phillips MD, MSHP6, Bruce E. Landon MD MBA7

1 Clinical Product Development, Waymark Care, San Francisco, California

2 Division of General Medicine and Clinical Epidemiology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina

3 Inova Health System, Fairfax, Virginia

4 Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina

5 Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina

6 American Board of Family Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky

7 Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts

Here, we sought to estimate the cost of implementing interventions to screen for and mitigate social needs detected in primary care practices. We sought to understand where gaps between needs and existing interventions are highest, and estimate the costs of implementing a comprehensive approach to addressing social needs.