High-quality primary care can improve health outcomes, mitigate health disparities, and decrease avoidable health care spending. Primary care in the U.S., however, is drastically underfunded compared to peer countries, inhibiting its potential to achieve quality improvements and cost savings. A number of state legislatures are exploring how to encourage or require health insurers to increase primary care investment, as well as set standards ensuring that this funding supports advanced primary care capabilities. Unfortunately, many of these efforts exclude Medicaid from primary care investment requirements, limiting opportunities to address health equity limiting opportunities to address health equity and support the specific needs of people served by Medicaid.

This webinar, made possible by The Commonwealth Fund, explored approaches to increase primary care spending at the state level, including within Medicaid. Speakers provided a national overview of primary care investment efforts and highlighted Oregon’s experience incorporating multi-payer primary care spending requirements into Medicaid policy.

Strengthening Primary Care through Medicaid Managed Care

This webinar is part of a learning series from the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS), Strengthening Primary Care through Medicaid Managed Care, which is examining the tools and levers that states can use to advance comprehensive primary care strategies and equitably improve the health of Medicaid enrollees. The series is made possible by The Commonwealth Fund.

YouTube video

Agenda

I. Welcome

Speaker: Anne Smithey, MPH, Program Officer, CHCS

A. Smithey welcomed webinar attendees and introduced speakers.

II. National Overview of Primary Care Spending

Speaker: Diana Crumley, JD, MPAff, Senior Program Officer, CHCS

D. Crumley provided a national overview of state-level efforts to measure and increase primary care spending as a share of total health care spending.

III. Oregon’s Approach to Primary Care Investment

Speaker: Summer Boslaugh, MBA, MHA, Transformation Analyst, Oregon Health Authority

S. Boslaugh presented Oregon’s work to develop policies to measure and increase primary care spending over time. She focused on how these multi-payer requirements were translated to the Medicaid context and what successes Oregon Medicaid has seen so far.

IV. Moderated Q&A

A. Smithey moderated an audience Q&A session.

V. Wrap Up and Next Steps

A. Smithey concluded the webinar and previewed the final session in the series.