Spreading the word about Medicaid expansion means all hands on deck

Beginning December 1, 2023, hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians will become eligible for healthcare coverage through Medicaid. The services provided include primary and maternity care as well as hospital stays, prescription drug benefits, and more. Many efforts are underway at the state and local level to connect newly eligible individuals to these resources.

According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, most in-state U.S. citizen residents between the ages of 19-64 — and some non-citizens — will be able to get coverage through Medicaid if their household income falls at or slightly above the federal poverty level. That’s roughly $20,000 for a single adult and $34,000 for a family of three.

Spreading the word about these healthcare benefits among the roughly 600,000 full Medicaid-eligible recipients is a herculean task. On the front lines of the effort are federally qualified community health center providers.

The North Carolina Community Health Center Association represents dozens of these organizations statewide serving 750,000 patients each year. Communications Manager Stacie Borrello says for her organization and the members they support on the ground, it’s a proactive approach.

"So we’ll be going through their existing patients and determining who’s eligible," says Borrello. "They will be screening people who come in, whether they’re new or existing patients. They do mobile outreach to go to public housing sites to serve the unhoused as well in those areas. So there’s specific population admissions that we serve by mission with the mobile outreach as well. So, we’re getting out to the community and finding everyone we can and we’re kind of built for that."

Borrello says the centers rely on community health workers with life experience in the communities they serve. She notes that plans are in place to hire 8 regional coordinators to provide additional support and assistance.