A Medicaid Benefit for Health-Related Social Needs
This article reviews Oregon’s efforts to improve outcomes and reduce costs within their Medicaid program through health-related social needs.
K. John McConnell, PhD, is Director of the Center for Health Systems Effectiveness (CHSE) at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and Professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at OHSU and the OHSU/Portland State University School of Public Health. CHSE’s work in Medicaid includes analyses of the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) Analytic Files (TAF) data, with projects focusing on behavioral health, reproductive health, long-term care, managed care, and social determinants of health and health equity. CHSE currently leads several Medicaid waiver evaluations for states in the Northwest and serves as the hosting organization for the Medicaid Insights Colloquium, a bi-monthly virtual speaking series focused on Medicaid policy and research. Dr. McConnell has published more than 150 peer-reviewed articles, with articles appearing in high-impact journals, including Health Affairs, NEJM, and JAMA-family journals. He received his PhD in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University in 2001.
Authored by K. John McConnell, Ph.D.
Making Connections to Social Support for a Healthier Community
This analysis of a rural community’s efforts to address the health and social needs of its low-income residents found that Medicaid members faced resource challenges, including insufficient affordable housing and limited numbers of bilingual providers and behavioral health providers.
Oregon leverages Medicaid to address social determinants of health and health equity
By promoting use of health-related services and adding a profit reinvestment mandate, Oregon is using managed care contracting to expand Medicaid spending on social determinants of health and health equity.
Assessing Oregon’s Efforts to Increase Investments to Address Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity
The goal of this project is to help state Medicaid agencies understand how managed care organizations respond to contracting requirements regarding social determinants of health and health equity (SDOH-E), and to help inform federal policy to enhance funding for SDOH-E investments.