04 Apr Innovation Digest – April 2023 Vol. 1

Change is in the air. I’m reading more about partnerships with patients and patient communities to fundamentally change practice in research design, data collection, and delivery of care. That’s great, as long as we keep the lived experience in an equal position of leadership and expertise. Read Shannan’s story to understand why people like her have the experience and insight to what good health and quality of life look like, and the real economic burden that chronic disease can present for individuals and families. Equity requires that we improve both the who and the what we’re measuring to make good decisions. Meanwhile, as we begin to watch the new reality for Medicaid, it is disheartening to see that we still have far to go to see parity in coverage for mental health. And, when we fail to cover preventive and primary care, can we be surprised at higher utilization of high-cost care and crisis service demand? We can do better.

In this issue:

• Bringing One Health Journey Forward: An Interview with Shannan O’Hara-Levi about the Economic Impacts of Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Medicaid Coverage of Behavioral Health Services in 2022: Findings from a Survey of State Medicaid Programs
• Threats To Equity: Missing Methodological Details About Race And Ethnicity In Health Research
• Strengthen science by funding living evidence synthesis
• New data collection recommendations to address health disparities