NCQA Recognizes WI UnitedHealthcare Plan for Health Equity Efforts

UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin has been recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) for its efforts to advance health equity and address care disparities.

The NCQA Health Equity Accreditation acknowledges health plans, provider organizations, and other healthcare programs that exhibit a focus on health equity work.

The accreditation recognizes organizations that create an internal culture that supports their external health equity work, establish language services and provider networks that meet members’ cultural and linguistic needs, and identify opportunities to reduce health inequities and improve care.

“Ensuring every individual in Wisconsin has access to high-quality care is at the core of our mission,” Kevin Moore, chief executive officer of UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin, said in the press release. “We are honored to receive this accreditation from NCQA in recognition of our commitment to reduce disparities and improve health outcomes in the communities we serve.”

UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin has partnered with federally qualified health centers and community-based organizations to help address care disparities across the state.

The payer has provided scholarships for students pursuing healthcare careers at Milwaukee Area Technical College and has partnered with local barbershops to support better access to care for Black men in Dane County.

Additionally, the health plan helped expand access to doulas for Black mothers in the Milwaukee area, according to the press release. The payer also collaborated with the Muslim Community Health Center to boost health literacy and identify social determinants of health and care gaps for refugee populations.

“To meet the current and pressing issues that are creating disparities in Wisconsin, we modernized our health plan through an enhanced engagement in population health,” Trisha Houghton, director of population health and quality improvement for UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Wisconsin, said.

“Our NCQA Health Equity Accreditation, coupled with the work of our health equity consultant and housing navigator, provides new resources and connections to identify and address barriers and lead to improved health outcomes for our members and the communities we serve.”

The payer has also developed benefits and programs for members that address care barriers and social determinants of health. Some of the benefits include transportation services, maternal care, language assistance, and home healthcare services.

UnitedHealthcare has invested over $20 million to create more than 240 affordable housing developments in underserved communities since 2018.

In October 2022, the company contributed $5 million to the Multi-Assistance Center (MAC) at Morgan’s Wonderland, a theme park that serves people with special needs. The MAC helps support medical and non-medical needs, providing therapeutic, social, and medical services.

UnitedHealthcare’s investment helped support a program that offers counseling and education to individuals with disabilities to help them succeed in the workplace and a program that helps this population become more comfortable with medical tests and procedures.

The payer also partnered with a community-based organization in April 2022 to boost maternal health equity for minority populations in North Carolina. The organization, SistasCaring4Sistas, offers a program that aims to improve access to care for low-income and Black mothers. The program provides prenatal, pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care.