Magellan Health & Addiction Treatment
Keystone Health Group works with Magellan Health-administered plans. Our admissions team handles verification and prior authorization on your behalf — free and confidential.
What Is Magellan Health?
Magellan Health is one of the largest managed behavioral health organizations (MBHOs) in the United States. Rather than being a primary insurer, Magellan acts as a behavioral health carve-out — meaning many health plans contract with Magellan to specifically manage mental health and substance use disorder benefits on their behalf. If your insurance plan uses Magellan, Magellan handles the authorization, utilization review, and clinical oversight of your behavioral health care.
Magellan administers behavioral health benefits for a wide range of employer-sponsored plans, government programs, and commercial insurers. Our admissions team is experienced working directly with Magellan's authorization and utilization review processes.
What Levels of Care Does Magellan Typically Cover?
How Magellan's Authorization Process Works
Magellan uses ASAM (American Society of Addiction Medicine) criteria to determine the appropriate level of care and medical necessity. For inpatient and residential treatment, prior authorization is required before admission. Magellan also conducts concurrent utilization reviews — typically every few days — to confirm ongoing medical necessity throughout treatment. Keystone Health Group's clinical team prepares documentation for each review, ensuring your coverage is supported at every stage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Magellan Health cover addiction treatment?
Yes. Magellan Health is a managed behavioral health organization (MBHO) that administers mental health and substance use disorder benefits for many health plans. If your insurance plan uses Magellan to manage behavioral health benefits, Magellan will authorize and oversee your addiction treatment coverage under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.
How does Magellan Health work with my insurance?
Magellan Health acts as a behavioral health carve-out — meaning your primary insurer (such as Aetna, Cigna, or an employer plan) contracts with Magellan to specifically manage mental health and substance use benefits. When you seek addiction treatment, Magellan handles the prior authorization, utilization review, and clinical oversight of your behavioral health benefits.
Does Magellan require prior authorization for rehab?
Yes. Magellan typically requires prior authorization for inpatient, residential, and PHP levels of care. Keystone Health Group's clinical and admissions team handles the authorization process on your behalf, including submitting clinical documentation and responding to any utilization review requests from Magellan.
What levels of care does Magellan cover?
Magellan covers the full continuum of behavioral health care, including medical detox, residential treatment, partial hospitalization (PHP), intensive outpatient (IOP), and outpatient therapy, subject to medical necessity criteria and your specific plan's terms.
How do I know if my plan uses Magellan?
Look at the back of your insurance card for a behavioral health phone number or the name of a behavioral health administrator. If Magellan is listed, they manage your mental health and addiction benefits. You can also call our admissions team — we'll identify who manages your behavioral health benefits during the verification process.
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