Looking in unexpected places for solutions to society's most pressing challenges. Building teams and working with organizations to break through the noise and get real results.
🎉 Wrapping up the 3-day marathon that was the Texas Association of Health Plans 2023 conference, I can't help but be in awe of Texas' progress, conscious of the size of the challenges that face the state, and optimistic about the future. Here are some of my top takeaways from Days 2&3: 📄 Texas Medicaid has new leadership and she’s got priorities: Emily Zalkovsky is a veteran of HHSC but she’s new to the Medicaid Director role and she’s here with clear priorities. That kind of direction is just what the field needs to engage and transform the delivery system. Expanding access to members, driving adoption of value based models, and expanding partnerships are just a few of her top 5 priorities. She’s clearly a leader to watch in this space. 💰 Value Based Care is here to stay y’all: It says a lot that Day 2 of the conference had a panel on some aspect of value based care during all time slots. It’s a reflection that the state of VBC is strong here in TX and it was great to see what models are working and seeing high levels of uptake (TCOC attributed to PCP still dominates the space) and to have honest conversations about what’s not working (need to move beyond ‘boilerplate’ models, need to involve specialty care, need to think about what types of providers are the right principal care provider—hint: it’s not always the PCP!) 🚩 Business as we know it no longer: A key thread running through the panel conversations and the conversations at the water cooler was the high level of disruption this space is experiencing. Whether it is the Medicaid redetermination process, the questions raised by artificial intelligence creeping into the workflows of both payers and providers, or the rising costs of RX due to GLP-1 and other high-cost pharmaceuticals, it is clear that 2023 was a year of turbulent change. And don’t look to 2024 for stability. I’ll have a full write up next week, for now, know that Texas is an exciting market for those looking to bring value into the health care ecosystem.
Juliette Price will be attending the Texas Health Plan Association annual conference in Houston, TX on Nov. 6, 2023 . If you're going to be in the area and you are interested in meeting with Juliette, please reach out to us at [email protected].
