The impact of consumer engagement on health equity in Medicaid

On Wednesday, September 25, we hosted a live webcast featuring Health Equity Advisory Board members, Lillianna Garcia, founder of Rebuilding Independence My Style and Shilpa Patel, PhD, Director of Population Health & Health Equity for the Center for Health Care Strategies. The conversation centered around insights into the importance of consumer engagement and how UnitedHealthcare is working to expand engagement-focused programs in order to advance health equity for all members. 

Consumer engagement helps to identify health system challenges and opportunities, advance equitable policies and build trust between consumers and those delivering care. Prioritizing transformational consumer engagement requires organizations to foster trust, partner with outside institutions and allow flexible touchpoints for consumers.

In this webcast, Ms. Garcia and Dr. Patel discussed barriers that consumers face when engaging with the Medicaid system, as well as policies that can build consumer confidence. They also shared personal experiences where their input noticeably influenced the Medicaid program.

The full video can be viewed below.