Shifting health care resources to proactive care could dramatically reduce spending and improve quality of life for Americans. That was the findings of a recent analysis—Safeguarding Medicare: Proactive Care Could Unlock $500B In Annual Program Savings. Proactive care investments—in prevention, early detection, and behavioral change—could reduce overall Medicare and Medicaid spending by 28%. This type of investment, could, by 2040, reduce per-person costs by 31%—from $23,000 to less than $16,000.

Behavioral health is central to that proactive care savings opportunity (see The Projected Costs And Economic Impact Of Mental Health Inequities In The United States). Behavioral health conditions are closely linked to the most costly chronic diseases and are projected to drive nearly $14 trillion in excess costs due to inequities alone by…