Meeting Medicaid Enrollees Where They Are: AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania Launches Mobile Wellness and Opportunity Centers

AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania – a Medicaid managed care plan serving central, northeastern, northwestern and southwestern Pennsylvania and part of the AmeriHealth Caritas Family of Companies – announced today the rollout of its new Mobile Wellness and Opportunity Center.

Much like the brick-and-mortar wellness center in Hazelton, Pa., the objective of the mobile center is to help Medicaid members overcome the social, economic and environmental barriers to achieving and maintaining a healthy life by delivering health care services and resources to where they live, work, shop and socialize.

Open to members and the public, the Mobile Wellness and Opportunity Center will offer a variety of services such as health education workshops, fitness and nutrition classes, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (S.N.A.P.) benefits counseling, and opportunities for members to complete their health risk assessments and attend Mission GED® classes to earn their general equivalency diplomas (GEDs). The mobile unit will initially focus on health education programs, such as chronic disease and stress management classes and healthy cooking demonstrations, before introducing a more robust offering of health screenings and childhood vaccinations.

Marge Angello, AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania Market President, said the health plan is working with its health care provider network to determine how to best use the mobile unit to target specific health concerns of the state’s most vulnerable communities. Angello, who is also a registered nurse, said the mobile unit will also utilize partnerships with community-based organizations who will support efforts to address social determinants of health, such as employment, nutrition and housing.

“We want to help residents connect with social service organizations to obtain the resources and support to help them address the non-medical factors that can affect their health,” she said. “We anticipate using the mobile units at our community baby showers where we connect new moms to important social services organizations and resources in their communities.”

Angello said an important function of the mobile units will be to reconnect Medicaid members to their doctors to properly manage their chronic health conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension, which too often were neglected during the pandemic.

Surveys indicate that during the past two-years of the COVID-19 pandemic, adults with chronic health conditions were more likely than those without health conditions to report delayed or forgone care. Unmet health care needs can adversely affect health and other daily activities and could potentially worsen chronic health conditions among adults who have them.¹ Health care professionals are concerned that those who postponed preventive care visits during the pandemic will increase the likelihood of severe illness tied to their chronic disease.

“The mobile wellness center will increase our visibility in communities where our members live and enhance engagement,” Angello said. “That will enable our staff to address any gaps in care management and help members reconnect with their doctors.”

The COVID-19 pandemic also interrupted Medicaid redetermination, the annual review process to determine a member’s eligibility for health care coverage. The health plan will also use the mobile wellness center and partner with community-based organizations to help members to complete member Medicaid recertifications to ensure there are no significant gaps in health insurance coverage, Angello said.

“We want to meet people where they are and provide the services that they need,” she said.

About AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania

AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania is a Medical Assistance (Medicaid) managed care health plan serving 62 counties in central, northeastern, northwestern, and southwestern Pennsylvania. Headquartered in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, AmeriHealth Caritas Pennsylvania is a mission-driven company dedicated to helping members get care, stay well, and build healthy communities. For more information, visit www.amerihealthcaritaspa.com.

About AmeriHealth Caritas

AmeriHealth Caritas is one of the nation’s leaders in health care solutions for those most in need. Operating in 13 states and the District of Columbia, AmeriHealth Caritas serves approximately 5 million Medicaid, Medicare, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and Health Insurance Marketplace® members through its integrated managed care products, pharmaceutical benefit management and specialty pharmacy services, and behavioral health services. Headquartered in Pennsylvania, AmeriHealth Caritas is a mission-driven organization with nearly 40 years of experience serving low-income and chronically ill populations. For more information, visit www.amerihealthcaritas.com.

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