As a regional Population Health Improvement Program (PHIP) this collaborative is saving the region millions in healthcare costs, streamlining efficiencies, and improving health outcomes
The governor’s proposed 2019 – 2020 state budget calls for elimination of the statewide Population Health Improvement Program (PHIP). With this action, the state may be missing an opportunity to further its investment to improve the health of the state’s 19.85 million residents and, more regionally, the 2.8 million residents of Long Island. The PHIP for Long Island is the Long Island Health Collaborative, and it is overseen by the Nassau-Suffolk Hospital Council (NSHC). The Hospital Council is one of the regional hospital associations that comprise the Suburban Hospital Alliance of New York State.
In just four years, the statewide regional PHIP contractors helped reduce healthcare costs, improved access for vulnerable populations, eliminated disparities, and helped the state move into the top 10 rankings of healthiest states in the nation. Those achievements are the crux of population health – an approach to healthcare that combines clinical and social determinants of health to manage populations who present with similar health concerns, such as uncontrolled diabetes or even a cohort of seniors from a specific geographic region. Such a group often presents with complex health conditions. The social determinants of health are factors outside of clinical control – employment, housing, and transportation – that affect a person’s ability to get and stay well.
The state’s investment in population health began in 2014 when the governor proposed in his State of the State address establishing regional collaboratives, which reflected the recommendations of the Public Health and Health Planning Council. The legislature adapted the proposal and included initial funding for the Population Health Improvement Program in that year’s budget.
The Long Island Health Collaborative embodies the state’s call to work collaboratively in solving community health issues. Through the relationships it has developed in just the past three and a half years, the LIHC brings together community-based organizations, academic institutions, health plans, public libraries, local municipalities, media partners, Long Island’s 22 hospitals, and the two county health departments – well over 100 organizations and counting.
This PHIP consistently fills a room with diverse organizations who, through the Long Island Health Collaborative’s guidance, have been able to move the needle on tackling some of the region’s most stubborn health issues. Collectively, these organizations improved adult physical activity levels and the nutritional status of populations – both goals of the state’s Prevention Agenda.
In-depth reports, compiled by the LIHC, look at physical activity and nutritional habits of adult Long Islanders. In a short time, this region’s PHIP has been able to demonstrate that Long Islanders are a bit more active than their state and national counterparts and consume more by the way of fruits. Nutrition and physical activity are key lifestyle behaviors that affect chronic diseases. Chronic disease conditions account for 90 percent of the nation’s $3.3 trillion in annual health care expenditures, as six in 10 adults suffer from at least one chronic condition, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Long Island Health Collaborative has been able to rally dozens of organizations and health providers to raise awareness among a variety of populations about the positive effects of proper nutrition and exercise. These collective efforts are saving the region millions in healthcare costs while improving individuals’ quality of life, work productivity, and civic engagement.
Most importantly, the Long Island Health Collaborative is leading the way in collecting and analyzing localized data about individuals’ and communities’ perception of health status, needs, barriers to care, and the social determinants of health. This data helps organizations make decisions about programming, interventions, and community investment. The Collaborative is the only entity in this region collecting and analyzing this localized primary data.
Our PHIP further advances the region’s health goals by providing the local county health departments and hospitals with vital data for their Community Health Needs Assessments. These assessments are required by the state. This service alone is worth about $1.2 million in total savings to the region – money which becomes available for programming, etc. Finally, the Long Island Health Collaborative is playing an integral role in guiding small community-based organizations regarding the usefulness and need for localized data collection as they enter into value-based payment arrangements with health plans and providers. Our PHIP provides personalized reports, concentrated information, and focused analyses of both primary and secondary data sources.
Funding for our region’s PHIP is in jeopardy. With the State Senate and Assembly working out details about the 2019 – 2020 state budget, the opportunity to commit to funding the PHIP program is imminent. The annual cost to operate the PHIP on Long Island is $600,000. This is a small investment when the savings in regional healthcare costs and efficient regional health planning are factored into the equation.
I thank those State Assembly members listed below who publicly committed to continued funding for the PHIP program. I urge all members of the state legislature to do the same. Otherwise, funding for this program will abruptly end on March 31, 2019.
Al Stripe, Anthony D’Urso, Barbara Lifton, Billy Jones, Carrie Woerner, Donna Lupardo, Harry Bronson, Jamie Romeo, John T. McDonald III, Karen McMahon, Kenneth Zebrowski, Jr., Kimberly Jeane-Pierre, Monica Wallace, Nader Sayegh, Pamela Hunter, Pat Burke, Patricia Fahy, Phil Steck, Richard Gottfried, Robin Schimminger, Sean Ryan, William Magnarelli, Andrew Raia, Angelo Morinello, Christopher Tague, Clifford Crouch, Dan Stec, David McDonough, Jacob Ashby, John Salka, and Mark Walczyk.
The Dahill Dose 