The Potential of Pay-for-Success as a Financing Strategy for Evidence-Based Practices: An Illustration with Multisystemic Therapy

There is a critical need to identify strategies for financing the implementation of evidence-based practices. We illustrate the potential of pay-for-success financing (PFS)—a strategy in which private investors fund implementation and receive a return on investment from a government payer—using multisystemic therapy as an example. We argue that standard multisystemic therapy (for serious juvenile offenders) and several of its adaptations (for other complex behavioral problems in youth) would be good candidates for PFS in the right contexts. Despite some challenges for policymakers and administrators, PFS has significant potential as a financing strategy for evidence-based practices.