The 2021 Open Minds Management Best Practices Institute is a five-day event in Newport Beach this week that is taking a deep dive into what health and human service executives need to do to help their members thrive in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which changed so much. Michael Brodsky, MD, L.A. Care’s Medical Director for Behavioral Health and Social Services, is a panelist on a session today titled Medicaid in the ‘Next Normal’: Challenges for Funding & Delivering Care for the Most Complex Consumers.
Brodsky and other panelists will share insights about the growing emphasis on integrated and whole person care approaches in an effort to improve health outcomes and reduce costs. They will discuss payer-provider partnerships in executing their strategies. Brodsky will specifically emphasize the importance of addressing the social needs of members, which impact health outcomes.
L.A. Care has long recognized the importance of supporting the social needs of our members and their communities. That became even more critical during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through our Community Resource Centers, which are jointly operated with plan partner Blue Shield Promise, social needs are being addressed in a variety of ways. Brodsky will share some of the highlights, such as the hosted and sponsored food pantries that fed tens of thousands of families and the back-to-school backpack giveaways that helped children be ready for school despite their family’s financial hardship.
Brodsky will also talk about the centers now offering free Wi-Fi in a telehealth hub equipped with a laptop and printer, to ensure those who don’t have Internet access at home can still see their doctors. There are currently nine centers across the county, with the goal to have 14 before the end of next year.
Brodsky will be joined in the ‘Next Normal’ panel by:
Cathy Gilbert, Senior Associate, OPEN MINDS
Eric C. Hunter, President and CEO, CareOregon
Richard Louis III, Vice President, West Region, OPEN MINDS
Jeffrey A. Nagel, PhD, Behavioral Health Director, Orange County Health Care Agency
The plenary panel will be followed by an open discussion among the panelists and attendees.