Access to Care and Coverage
Even though Vitalyst’s commitment to care and coverage spans decades, the work continues to progress in exciting and new ways. During FY20, those ways included improved insurance outreach and a systems shift for healthcare partners towards the Social Determinants of Health.
Focused Outreach Strategies Grow Smarter. Vitalyst and members of the Cover Arizona Coalition shifted enrollment outreach strategy to a stronger focus on zip codes and census tracts with the highest prevalence of uninsured individuals. A series of heat maps were developed to better realign resources and partners at the point of greatest coverage need. More than 400 new local business and organizational partners were established. Vitalyst also continued its support for and management of statewide enrollment assister trainings. These efforts contributed to nearly 155,000 Arizonans enrolling the Health Insurance Marketplace.
Health Care Shifts Towards the Social Determinants of Health. – Vitalyst assisted in developing a new collaboration in FY20 – alongside of key partners the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS, Arizona’s Medicaid Program), Health Current (Arizona’s state electronic medical record system), Arizona 211, the Arizona Partnership for Healthy Communities, and the Cover Arizona Coalition. We started with goal of changing systems in ways that recognize and support the role of social determinants in lowering costs while improving care quality and outcomes. A workshop series resulted in direct service provider feedback to AHCCCS and Health Current. As a result, AHCCCS and Health Current publicly announced their commitment to develop and finance a statewide closed-loop referral system between healthcare and social service providers. An idea among a handful of organizations is now a statewide initiative. This innovation has the potential to transform connections between (and finances within) the healthcare and social service sectors and will help to inform policies and practices that govern such resources.
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