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health maintenance organization

health maintenance organization

7 4.2
An organization that gives people group health insurance and care through a network of doctors for a yearly fee
  • noun
  • /hɛlθ ˈmeɪntənəns ˌɔrgənaɪˈzeɪʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : organización de mantenimiento de la salud
  • Health maintenance organizations can provide members with access to a wide network of doctors and hospitals.
  • health maintenance organizations (HMOs)
  • health maintenance organization (HMO)
  • health maintenance organizations, private insurance

Examples

  • The nursing facility also must understand the differences between Medicare health maintenance organizations and commercial managed care plans.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Social health maintenance organizations and continuing-care retirement communities are examples of this approach.

    Academic text (1990)
  • The study found that doctors blamed health maintenance organizations, private insurance companies, and the government for the current state of health care.

    Academic text (2006)
  • Under the Nixon administration, the concept and name of "health maintenance organization" were expanded through the Health Maintenance Organization Act of 1973.

    Academic text (1993)
  • Most of the top-rated health maintenance organizations in a recent Newsweek report are also committed to teaching.

    Academic text (1999)
  • In addition, findings from a state such as California, which has a higher proportion of physicians in staff model health maintenance organizations than the national average, may not be generalizable to other states.

    Academic text (2010)
  • However, their choice of physician is often limited by the mandates of various health maintenance organizations (HMOs).

    Academic text (2004)
  • For this reason, cost-conscious health maintenance organizations have begun to pay for wellness care in the hope of avoiding costly illness.

    Academic text (1991)
  • It's not beyond expectation that health maintenance organizations (HMOs) would put together multispecialty AIDS clinics similar to this one.

    Academic text (1999)
  • KPNW, a nonprofit health maintenance organization (HMO), provides medical care to over 450,000 members in northwest Oregon and southwest Washington.

    Academic text (2006)

Synonyms

HMO
vshealth maintenance organization
  • Specialized
98 4.3

A health plan that gives care through a set group of doctors for a fixed fee paid in advance

is the full formal phrase rather than the short abbreviation

How Restrictive

health maintenance organization
  • Specialized
7 4.2
indemnity
  • Formal
1 8.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

health + maintenance + organization

The components 'health' + 'maintenance' + 'organization' transparently yield the general idea of an organization concerned with maintaining health, so a B1 learner would grasp the broad purpose. However, the specific institutional sense (a particular kind of prepaid, network-based group insurance provider with membership and provider networks) is technical jargon not fully predictable from the parts, making the expression only partially transparent.

Etymology

Health maintenance organization comes from the idea that an organization does regular maintenance of people's health, like a garage that services a car to keep it running. So, an HMO is 'a group health plan that arranges regular care through a set group of doctors for a fixed fee'.