Community Health Workers in the Spotlight

As states and the nation transform their health systems, many policymakers are turning to community health workers (CHWs) to tackle some of the most challenging aspects of health improvement, such as facilitating care coordination, enhancing access to community-based services, mitigating the impacts of the social determinants of health, reducing health disparities, and containing costs. In light of the many emerging CHW models nationwide, state and federal policymakers need information and evidence to guide their decisions on CHW roles, recruitment and retention, training, credentialing, and financing. Greater alignment on strategies for defining and financing CHWs would help state and federal policymakers generate and share the information necessary to guide the most effective engagement of CHWs in a transforming health care system. (Excerpted from policy paper attached.)

Read more about how different states and health care organizations are using CHWs to deliver quality care in this policy paper drafted by the National Academy for State Health Policy:

Community Health Workers in the Wake of Health Care Reform: Considerations for State and Federal Policymakers

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