Condition class · subcategory · California
Schizophrenia denials at external review
When a California health plan denied care for schizophrenia and the enrollee took it to Independent Medical Review, this is what independent physician reviewers decided.
83.8%
- Overturned
- 31 of 37
- Era
- 2021-2025
- Jurisdiction
- California DMHC IMR
- Published class
- Schizophrenia
- Median days to decision
- 35
- All years
- 62.7% of 134
What stands out here
computed from this classmost-cited standard
Reviewers named LOCUS family more than any other standard here — 32 decisions, which came out at 90.6%. Citing a standard and the outcome share a cause; this is not the effect of naming it.
What reviewers relied on
3 validated codesCalifornia requires each published decision to carry “a detailed case summary that includes the specific standards, criteria, and medical and scientific evidence, if any, that led to the case decision” (Health & Safety Code § 1374.33(h)(1)(K)). These are the elements our extraction found in this class, split by how the decision came out.
| What the reviewer relied on | In overturns | In upholds |
|---|---|---|
| the FDA label or approval status | 0%n=31 | — |
| a standardised level-of-care instrument | 94%n=31 | — |
| a California statutory definition | 0%n=31 | — |
Read as description, not instruction. These are patterns in what reviewers wrote, not steps to follow, and no combination of them predicts an outcome. Only codes that cleared the validation gate appear — thirteen did not.
Authorities named in this class
computed- LOCUS family90.6%32
- American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry—2
- American Psychiatric Association—1
- FDA—1
A rate here is the outcome of decisions that named the authority, not the effect of naming it. Reviewers cite the standard they applied; the citation and the outcome share a cause.
By treatment
computed- Overturned — the reviewer did not sustain the denial
- Upheld — the reviewer sustained the denial
- Mental Health88.2%34
- Durable medical equipment—1
- Pharmacy—1
- Skilled nursing & inpatient rehab—1
The specific treatments inside this class
below n=30, no rate is claimed- RTC—27
- Acute Psych—4
- Partial Hospital—2
- Anti-Depressants—1
- Glucose Monitor—1
- Inpt Admission—1
- Psychotherapy—1
Every figure on this page is conditional on a denial having reached external review. Fewer than 1% of denials are appealed internally at all, so this describes denials that were fought to the end — not denials in general — and it describes California only. Who this does not cover.
Free help, first: the California DMHC Help Center files your Independent Medical Review at no cost — 1-888-466-2219, dmhc.ca.gov.