The main goal of health maintenance organizations is to?

The main goal of health maintenance organizations (HMOs) is to encourage preventive care. HMOs are structured to focus on overall health and wellness, emphasizing the prevention of diseases and health conditions before they require more extensive treatment. This results in a dual benefit: improving the health outcomes of patients and reducing healthcare costs over time by preventing serious illnesses that result from neglect or late interventions.

Preventive care in HMOs often includes routine check-ups, immunizations, screenings, and educational programs aimed at encouraging healthy lifestyles. By prioritizing preventive services, HMOs seek to enhance the health of their members and reduce the need for more costly treatments, aligning financial incentives with member health.

Additionally, while some other options touch on aspects of HMO operation, their focus is less aligned with the organizational goal of promoting comprehensive member health through prevention. Fee-for-service models (which are not the focus of HMOs) usually incentivize quantity of care rather than quality. Limiting access to specialists and restricting treatments to chronic conditions do not embody the core mission of HMOs and can be seen more as operational strategies rather than primary goals aimed at benefiting member health.