Too frequently, health and social care quality measures are designed with provider or payer perspectives in mind, rather than the perspectives of the people receiving care. Accordingly, decisions about funding, service provision, and policy may not reflect the needs and desires of the people they affect most, which can result in misallocations of resources. Quality measurement issues are particularly important for older adults enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare (dually eligible enrollees) whose complex health needs mean greater need for HCBS; this is especially true for people of color, who are disproportionately dually eligible for these programs.

As many states move to support more people in their homes and communities rather than in institutional settings, designing person-centered approaches to HCBS quality monitoring is essential. To explore quality measurement issues, this project engaged a small group of dually eligible older adults of color to learn what they prioritize regarding the quality of HCBS. We specifically explored which aspects of access and quality of care they prioritize most, and which validated survey questions most reflect these priorities based on their lived experiences.

View the full report here

On January 30, Community Catalyst partnered with the LeadingAge LTSS Center at UMass Boston to host a webinar to present key takeaways and lessons learned from the pilot study – “Centering Perspectives of Dually Eligible Older Adults of Color.”

Speakers included community partners from The Cambodian Family, the Curry Senior Center and the Alliance for Leadership and Education.

Two resources are now available – both a recording of the full webinar and the slides presented.

View the Presentation Slides