Monday, September 12, 2022

Medicaid Monday: Service Coordinators Connect Members to Services

by Jessica Lynch

Today’s Texas Medicaid is more than health care coverage—it connects Texans to the personalized care and support they need to stay healthy and live the fullest lives possible. Medicaid managed care gives Texans with complex medical needs access to caring health plan nurses that provide one-on-one support and walk families through every step of the complicated and overwhelming health care system. These service coordinators connect members to services beyond doctor’s visits—they help with arranging transportation, housing, coordinating meals, and navigating challenges at school and work.

As the public health emergency nears its fourth year, managed care organizations have effectively used the state’s COVID-19 flexibilities to safely and successfully conduct service coordination and non-medical assessments through telehealth. Through the pandemic, telehealth has allowed service coordinators to continue to be proactive, engaged, accessible, inclusive, and flexible.

The result? The pandemic has demonstrated that telehealth can be used to safely and effectively conduct service coordination activities and assessments and may even be a preferred option for some families. This one-on-one whole-health approach to personalized care and support—available both in-person and virtually, help Texans in need lead healthy, active lives and live independently in their own homes and communities.

Hear directly from Medicaid members and care coordinators how managed care addresses the specific needs of families in a way that works best for them.