The Iowa Primary Care Association and Iowa’s community health centers received a $200,000 grant as part of a collaboration with the MolinaCares Accord (MolinaCares), in conjunction with Molina Healthcare of Iowa (Molina). This grant helped provide resources to support our work addressing health disparities and inequities in rural and under-resourced areas throughout Iowa from July 2023-June 2024.
According to the CDC, 15% of all Americans live in rural areas and are at greater risk of death from heart disease, cancer, unintentional injury, chronic lower respiratory disease, and stroke. The most recent U.S. Census shows 37% of Iowans live in rural areas. Accordingly, more than half of Iowa’s community health center sites are in rural areas.
Over the last two years, community health centers in Iowa have been collaborating with the Iowa Primary Care Association on the Advancing Health Equity and Addressing Disparities (AHEAD) initiative. During this last year, the funding from MolinaCares helped to advance the initiative through a strategic implementation plan. As part of that work, both network-wide and local strategies were identified and goals developed to advance the work.
Local Strategy Highlights
- At the local level, Health Equity Champions were critical to supporting this work. These individuals serve as the person(s) leading communication and obtaining buy-in across their organization for local and statewide goals, planning for and providing input on statewide and local strategies, and providing timely feedback through the project. HECs continue to be a key part of our collective success.
- Community health centers focused on several strategies which included training and education, embedding health equity into operations and work culture, addressing drivers of health, and amplifying community voice through Boards and Patient Committees.
Throughout the year, each community health center and their local strategies support by this funding, were highlighted on the Iowa PCA’s social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn). These posts consistently produced above average engagement metrics.
As we wrap up our year, we’re excited to continue our strong partnership with the MolinaCares Accord and Molina Healthcare of Iowa, as we collectively work to advance health equity and address disparities.
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