Recorded presentation

Doak Bloss, BA, Ingham County Health Department, 5303 South Cedar Street, Lansing, MI 48909, 517-887-4503, HA_BLOSS@ingham.org

The Ingham Health Plan provides primary and specialty health care, pharmacy, lab, and radiology for people earning low incomes in Ingham County, Michigan. The plan was created through a public/private partnership between county and state government and two hospital systems. The plan was created at a time when adverse political conditions existed at the state level, and has been maintained through several years of an adverse economic climate as well. The development of sufficient “community will” was critical to the success of the plan.

Community outreach, using neighborhood groups and communities of color to engage and enroll people in the plan, built the enrollment to over 16,000 members, nearly 60% of the uninsured in the county. Outreach workers also used the enrollment process to connect people to other resources, including breast cancer screenings, exercise programs, and food security, building social connection within their neighborhoods.

In addition to the enhanced set of benefits, IHP members received medical homes and organized case management by nurse case managers. The capacity developed in Ingham County was then used to manage the care of similar plans in ten other counties in Michigan. Nearly 100,000 people are now covered by these plans.

The creation of the independent corporation composed of public and private partners also led to continued innovation in Ingham County. Participants attending this session will learn about the process that led to the creation of the Ingham Health Plan, the partnership dynamics that have created both challenges and solutions along the way, and the underlying values that must be present to sustain this type of model in a community.

Learning Objectives: