Improving Preventive Services Utilization Initiative

The Improving Preventive Services Utilization Initiative is intended to support partnerships that involve State Office of Minority Health (SOMH) and State Medicaid Office (SMO) partnerships to end health care inequities among Medicaid/CHIP beneficiaries. This program is expected demonstrate the effectiveness of such partnerships for increasing access to and use of prevention services by racial and ethnic minority populations with disparate health outcomes within the Medicaid/CHIP population groups. The SOMH-SMO involved partnerships will: identify top health conditions among Medicaid/CHIP beneficiaries and select up to three conditions to demonstrate an impact; identify the Medicaid/CHIP population group(s) among which the state intends to demonstrate an impact, utilizing a disparity impact statement; conduct outreach and educational activities for Medicaid/CHIP eligible individuals in racial/ethnic minority communities; assist eligible individuals not enrolled with obtaining Medicaid/CHIP benefits; link individuals to appropriate health care services; demonstrate improved access to and utilization of preventive healthcare and supportive services; increase utilization of preventive healthcare services and supportive services; and, disseminate identified best practices to address health inequities in preventive health care services for racial and ethnic minority populations. The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the importance of trusted messengers to facilitate access to and utilization of preventive health care services. Some state agencies, like SOMHs, have partnerships with community-based and other organizations within the state that are trusted messengers within racial and ethnic minority communities. These relationships with trusted messengers and their organizational location within State government uniquely position SOMHs to assist SMOs in connecting with racial and ethnic minority beneficiaries and developing programs to increase utilization of the preventive healthcare services.