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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Fadya Casseus, MA, Community Health Access Department, Community Service Society, 105 East 22nd Street, 8th floor, New York, NY 10010, 212-614-5356, fcasseus@cssny.org

Since its inception, Medicaid has gone through many transformations. In 1999, New York City's Medicaid program underwent one of its biggest changes when its payment structure went from fee- for-service to a mandatory managed care format. Over 2 million Medicaid eligible New Yorkers were affected. To assist consumers with understanding the changes, the State and City established an outreach program to educate and enroll Medicaid eligible individuals called the New York Medicaid CHOICE Education Program (Medicaid CHOICE). Traditionally, Medicaid beneficiaries are difficult to reach due to low literacy levels, language barriers, and a distrust of government institutions. The Community Service Society (CSS) collaborated with New York's enrollment broker, Maximus Inc to provide workshops around the City. By developing partnerships with community-based organizations (CBOs), CSS was able to target consumers through trusted sources. The CBOs contracted with CSS to conduct outreach and education workshops in 15 different languages. The program works to empower and assist consumers in a safe and comfortable environment, which allows them to make knowledgeable health care decisions. To date CSS has subcontracted with 25 CBOs and conducted over 5,0000 Medicaid CHOICE workshops.

Every individual should have a say in his/her health care. Medicaid CHOICE works with members of disenfranchised communities to assist them in taking control of their health by showing them how to make their health plans work for them. This presentation will examine Medicaid CHOICE's success in penetrating these communities and assisting consumers in gaining access to the education needed to make informed choices.

Learning Objectives:

• At the conclusion of this presentation, the participant will be able to recognize the importance of developing partnerships with community-based organizations to connect with populations who are traditionally difficult to reach

Keywords: Access to Health Care, Community-Based Partnership

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered