At an August 3rd Steering Committee Meeting, WHI leaders clearly identified the WHI’s goals: first, to increase and maintain insurance coverage for low-income, uninsured, Medicaid recipients in Washtenaw County; second, to improve their access to coordinated, integrated care; and third, to develop a voluntary, collaborative, community-based health planning model that could be replicated in other … Read more
In April, the Washtenaw County Board of Commissions approved a resolution to support the WHI with $10,000 in 2012 and 2013. In an Ann Arbor News article, Norm Herbert, retired treasurer for the University of Michigan and one of the original Washtenaw Health Initiative leaders, said that “the financial support would allow the WHI to … Read more
At the February 9th Steering Committee meeting, after hearing about Greater Washtenaw Area Care Partners, a loose association of physicians and physician groups that work together to coordinate care, the WHI Steering Committee asked CHRT to develop a list of all Washtenaw County coordinated care projects. “There are many types of community-wide care groups at … Read more
At a December 9th meeting the Steering Committee implemented a two-step financial funding decision-making process. A small subcommittee would review financial needs and proposals from workgroups before bringing them to the Steering Committee for a vote.
On November 14, 2011, CHRT hired a full-time project manager, Carrie Rheingans, MSW/MPH, to support the WHI. Rheingans would serve in this role until 2020, helping WHI leaders and members achieve many notable goals.
After receiving upwards of seven informal requests to join the WHI throughout the summer, on October 24, the Steering Committee approved the a WHI Charter as a Statement of Commitment for new members.
On October 7th, the Steering Committee agreed to restructure committees and subcommittees into the following workgroups: Medicaid and Insurance Exchange Enrollment and Eligibility chaired by Deb Jackson, Primary Care Capacity and Coordination chaired by Tom Biggs, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Care co-chaired by Gregory Dalack and Nancy Baum, Community Outreach and Other Services chaired … Read more
At the June 28th Steering Committee meeting, the WHI leaders formally outlined seven projects: Primary Care Navigation; Care Navigation; Dental Acute Care Expansion; Dental Reduced Fee Program; Streamlining Medicaid Eligibility as a Beta Test for the State; Medicaid Enrollment; and Community Outreach for Medicaid Enrollment. The projects’ goals and objectives were shared by the two … Read more
On July 7, 2011, the WHI website went live and the group issued a local press release that formally announced the formation of the Washtenaw Health Initiative. On the same day, Crain’s Detroit published a story highlighting the WHI’s work: Washtenaw health care collaborative plans for influx of insured patients in 2014, the Ann Arbor … Read more
At a Steering Committee meeting, WHI leaders discussed recommendations for future projects including boosting primary care capacity, launching an acute dental care pilot, launching a reduced fee dental care referral program, conducting outreach to ensure more qualified families enrolled in Medicaid health insurance, and more. The WHI, which was originally intended to be a six-month … Read more