Announcement of the Inaugural Medicaid Innovation Collaborative Cohort

NEW ORLEANS, Oct. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Across the nation, state Medicaid programs and managed care organizations (MCOs) are employing strategic efforts to address health inequities in their respective geographical contexts, especially as COVID-19 has presented new, and exacerbated old, challenges for vulnerable populations. Medicaid Innovation Collaborative (MIC), a program that aims to link Medicaid programs to private sector, technology-enabled innovations that improve health equity, has launched the inaugural MIC cohort with Arizona, Hawaii, Virginia, and West Virginia. Representing over 3.2M diverse Medicaid and CHIP enrollees, the participating states have selected behavioral health as the shared area of focus for the program.

"The Medicaid Innovation Collaborative is a unique opportunity for these four participating states and their MCOs to identify innovative challenges and set a strategy to solve them. As a cohort, our programs have common needs and, through this collaborative, can leverage common solutions," said Jami Snyder, Director of the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS).

Unmet behavioral health needs are an often-overlooked driver of health equity gaps. Participating MIC states noted the following priority access and quality challenges areas within behavioral health: (1) substance use disorder and mental health for expecting and new mothers; and (2) adolescent health.

In the 12-month program, through an innovation process designed by MIC, and technical assistance provided by CHCS, the cohort will:

1. Identify where early-stage, tech-enabled innovation can advance behavioral health equity, and develop related success benchmarks
2. Review an open call – informed by Medicaid members and provider research – of applications
3. Enable MCOs to develop technology-enabled strategies that advance behavioral health equity goals

The program will engage each state's respective MCOs, providers, and Medicaid members to ensure that these perspectives are reflected in the solutions.

In addition to advancing behavioral health equity in their state, this inaugural cohort will pave a path for replicable technological innovations in Medicaid, enabling Medicaid members to have access to high-quality, high-impact products and services that positively impact their health and wellbeing.

About Medicaid Innovation Collaborative:

Medicaid Innovation Collaborative (MIC) is an innovation program to advance health equity in Medicaid. Digital health solutions that improve access and quality of care, as well as address social and environmental needs are underutilized, yet powerful potential solutions to transform the health and wellbeing of the most vulnerable and diverse patient populations in the United States. Through programming, technical assistance, and other resources, MIC enables state Medicaid programs, their managed care plans, and other key stakeholders to more effectively identify and implement such solutions. Structured as a cohort program, states will have the opportunity to share learnings and collaborate with their peers on a specific health equity challenge.

The Medicaid Innovation Collaboration is a partnership of three organizations committed to improving the health and wellbeing for low-income Americans:  Acumen, an impact investment firm focused on tackling issues of poverty in the U.S., Adaptation Health, innovation consultants in Medicaid, and the Center for Health Care Strategies, a policy design and implementation partner working to improve outcomes for Medicaid beneficiaries.

Media contact:
David Kulick
[email protected] 
(716) 864-5070

SOURCE Medicaid Innovation Collaborative