“Research affirms what we intuitively know: The ability of individuals and families to lead healthy and productive lives is influenced by a multitude of factors. Beyond the more commonly recognized factors such as insurance coverage and access to medical care are the non-medical social determinants of health (SDOH). These non-medical drivers include access to healthier foods, safer neighborhoods, reliable transportation, and educational attainment. They also include how we behave in our environment such as exercise, eating habits, and tobacco use. SDOH account for more health outcomes, including cost, than medical care alone. Importantly, emerging evidence suggests that addressing negative SDOH can lead to improvements in health outcomes…”
“This interest on the part of the health care system was punctuated in November 2018 in a speech by Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary Alex Azar. He outlined specific initiatives that HHS is undertaking to help address SDOH including numerous efforts underway through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (the Innovation Center), Medicare Advantage, as well as the Medicaid program and in other places across HHS. The secretary also underscored that HHS’s commitment to advancing value-based health care includes the goal of broadening the opportunities for medical providers to positively impact SDOH through additional flexibilities in programs such as Medicare and Medicaid…”
“We are encouraged by the number of state Medicaid programs that are actively addressing SDOH in innovative ways through their managed care contracts and other mechanisms such as Section 1115 Demonstration Waivers. In fact, approximately 40 states incorporate SDOH-related activities through managed care contracts or Section 1115 demonstration waivers. These activities range from employment, education, food, housing, transportation, and violence/abuse support services, or other related concepts such as wellness, disparities, community health workers, and justice-involved populations.” Read the full article here.
Source: For An Option To Address Social Determinants Of Health, Look To Medicaid – By Karen DeSalvo and Michael O. Leavitt, July 8, 2019. Health Affairs.
