49.2 NATIONAL TRENDS IN ATTENTION-DEFICIT/HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER CARE

Objectives: Closing the gap between evidence-based clinical practices and routine care for children with ADHD is an important public health goal. Methods: Medicaid enrollment, claims, and prescription drug disbursement data from the Medicaid Analytic Extract (MAX) from 20 states for 2001 to 2010 were analyzed for children with ADHD (ages 3-17 years). Treatment services were analyzed to compare rates of medication, psychotherapy, and combined treatment services. Results: The proportion of children of low income who were diagnosed with ADHD rose by 83 percent. Rates of comorbidity were high (43.3 percent in 2010), an increase of 13 percent over the study period. There was a 74 percent increase in combined treatment; psychotherapy alone increased by 52 percent, and rates of medication alone decreased by 18 percent. Conclusions: More children received treatments that appeared to conform to clinical practice standards over the decade.