Policy & Practice | Summer 2024

Learning from the Pandemic: Contact Tracing We were in the HOP planning stage and able to learn from approaches we used in our pandemic work, demon strating how we could address social risks to improve health. This experience facilitated a philos ophy focused on trying something and making investments in our community, then using data to inform whether or not the interventions we proposed were working. If outcomes didn’t improve, we adjusted. If they did, we increased interventions, thereby creating a virtuous cycle to strengthen the program. This data validation was necessary to meet the requirements of the 1115 waiver when we received an infusion of federal funds during the pandemic and because we were using Medicaid dollars. North Carolinians have a strong sense of community, and we made sure to engage our community partners in our pandemic work in a way that was meaningful to them. We included their voices on policy formation and program aspects, and we got their feedback. We proved that investing in people in North Carolina was worth while. HOP is the natural evolution of our pandemic work. The Impact of HOP We were able to do more with HOP because we focused on social deter minants, giving citizens a more robust system of support. Take one example: Local hospitals identified children in Charlotte who were adversely affected by asthma. They were missing school, and their parents were missing work to care for them. Understanding the connec tion between social risks and health enabled hospital workers to go into the community and investigate the environments in which these asthmatic kids were living. When they found health concerns like mold, they helped these families get new carpeting, air purifiers, and filters. The quality of

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The quality of life for these families improved.

life for these families improved. The kids could go back to school and keep learning—the parents could go back to work and keep earning. HOP doesn’t just affect individuals and communities. North Carolina also benefits because healthier people and communities mean a reduc tion in costs for the state. Focusing on social determinants allows us to be successful, and the framework we’re using feels scalable from an administrative, infrastructure, and community standpoint. Focusing on People Delivers Extraordinary Results We are seeing results of HOP quickly. We’re able to demonstrate in a statistically significant way that improvements are happening. Our primary finding: The longer a member is in HOP, the fewer their social needs and the better their health. We’re making people healthier

and we’re creating relationships within the community to help their efforts become sustainable after the upfront investment.

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What’s Next for HOP? With HOP, we have created a

legacy for communities that can be built around supporting people with Medicaid. Over the next few years, we plan to: n Extend HOP statewide, so we can cover more populations (like foster children and previously incarcerated individuals) n Strengthen our community-based organizations and help them become sustainable n Add new services My team and I are looking forward to continuing the work to expand HOP’s services throughout the entire state of North Carolina. We can’t stop now. When we invest in our people, we win.

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Summer 2024 Policy & Practice