States have two new opportunities to integrate care for beneficiaries who are dually-eligible for Medicare and Medicaid: capitated models and managed fee-for-service models. While each type relies on different contracting approaches, an essential requirement for both is that states must have mechanisms for meaningful engagement of stakeholders — e.g., beneficiaries, advocacy organizations, care providers, and others — who may influence or be affected by integrating care.

This brief discusses the reasons why it is important to engage stakeholder groups; how to identify distinct audience groups within the stakeholder community; how to target messages to specific audiences; and what methods of communication are available. Examples of ways in which states are engaging with stakeholders are presented.

This policy brief is part of CHCS’ Technical Assistance for Dual Eligible Integrated Care Demonstrations program, made possible through The SCAN Foundation and The Commonwealth Fund. Through this program, CHCS is helping demonstration states develop and implement integrated-care models for individuals eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid services.