New Initiative Supports Practices with Behavioral Health Integration
Meeting patients’ mental health needs and considering social impacts on their health are fundamental to providing comprehensive, patient-centered and high-quality care.
However, the lack of improvement in screening and care access demonstrates the need for greater support for primary care practices working to integrate behavioral health services.
- CQC’s Behavioral Health Integration Initiative, from 2022 through 2027, will accelerate integration efforts by small and independent primary care practices throughout the State of California to improve screening, diagnosis and treatment of mild-to-moderate behavioral health needs of their patients who face depression, anxiety and substance use disorder.
- Direct technical assistance and implementation funding up to $100,00 will be available to primary care provider organizations through the CalHIVE Improvement Collaborative launching in Summer 2023.
If you are interested, you can learn more about the collaborative and application process at our informational webinar on November 30 from 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PT.
CQC’s Behavioral Health Integration Initiative is possible thanks to the generous support of the Centene Corporation and the California Health Care Foundation.
California Advanced Primary Care Initiative: Planning for 2023
The California payers that signed a memorandum of understanding committing to work collaboratively through 2025 to scale advanced primary care are moving their commitments from vision to action.
- Leaders from Aetna, Aledade, Blue Shield, Health Net, Oscar and UnitedHealthcare recently refined a 2023 work plan that includes exploring a hybrid payment pilot that specifically addresses equity, creating a target for primary care investment and enhancing the collection and use of patient demographic data.
Join the California Medical Association webinar, The Future of Primary Care in California, on Tuesday, November 1 at 12:15 p.m. PT to hear more about the details of the California Advanced Primary Care Initiative.
Presenters will include CQC’s Lindsay Petersen and representatives from Blue Shield of California, one of the participating payers.
Improving the Collection and Use of Race, Ethnicity and Language Data
CQC hosted a webinar highlighting the importance of improving the collection and use of race, ethnicity and language (REaL) data and how that data can help us understand the populations we serve and better address health disparities. A recording is available and can be revisited anytime.
Key Takeaways from the Conversation:
- The current availability of self-reported REaL is extremely limited across the commercial and Medicare markets. These limitations hinder the ability to see
where disparities exist and for the health system to react with meaningful interventions. Uniform reporting standards and stronger reporting requirements are needed at a statewide and national level.
- Investing in team-based care is key to better establishing relationships and building trust with patients to make data more meaningful and accurate. At its core, primary care is about building trusting relationships and caring for the whole person. For this reason, primary care is uniquely positioned to help identify and alleviate disparate care and
outcomes.
- There is no silver bullet to increasing the amount and quality of self-reported REaL data being exchanged and used for disparity mitigation within the health system. However, a combination of key levers working in tandem—legislation and implementation, direction setting from public and private purchasers, contracting and business strategies from payers, internal systems and culture at health care organizations and education and elevation of voices from the right advocates—are needed.
Join Our Team
We have two new job opportunities – an Associate Director of Practice Transformation and an Improvement Advisor – in the Los Angeles area to provide leadership and improvement advising for CQC’s collaboratives and projects.
Initially, both roles will help lead a multi-year program that seeks to reduce health disparities in LA county by providing intensive technical assistance and practice transformation support to independent primary care practices serving Medi-Cal patients. Candidates with experience in health care delivery settings and quality improvement are encouraged to apply.
Upcoming CQC Webinars
CQC in the News
Xtelligent Healthcare Media Podcast: Unifying Competing Stakeholders to Collaborate on Advanced Primary Care
Partner Resources
Covered California Case Study: California’s Marketplace Innovations: Driving Health Plan Accountability for Quality and Equity
