Across the nation, health care payers, providers, and policymakers are seeking ways to engage community members to better understand barriers to good health and invest in programs that better meet community needs. Medicaid enrollees and people enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid disproportionately experience high rates of complex health and social needs. Engaging with this population can positively impact health outcomes, lead to more culturally appropriate interventions, and empower communities that have been historically disenfranchised.

While robust evidence exists on the benefits of direct patient engagement for people with complex needs, there is limited evidence on engaging patients and community members in organizational or policy decision-making and co-design. Spurred by growing recognition that involving people most impacted by health disparities will advance health equity, many health care stakeholders are seeking to enhance their community engagement processes. In addition, recently proposed federal regulations will likely expand opportunities for people with lived experience to inform state Medicaid program design and policy decision-making, creating further need to understand promising strategies and build capacity in this area.

Health care stakeholders, including policymakers, health plans, and providers, can use this Better Care Playbook Collection to understand emerging evidence and best practices for implementing community engagement interventions to better meet community needs and improve health equity.