Unlocking Medicaid’s Potential: Drive Effective Government Strategies with Social Care Data

Like many of you, Findhelp is monitoring potential changes to Medicaid programs. Regardless of how these programs change, the fact remains that Medicaid will continue to play a meaningful role in providing healthcare coverage. As such, it is critical for Medicaid programs and agencies to have effective government strategies. That’s where social care data comes into play. 

Welcome to Part 2 of our Social Care Data Series, where Carla Nelson, Findhelp’s Senior Director of Healthcare and Public Policy, examines how Medicaid programs can collect and leverage social care data to drive strategy, decision-making, and community health.

Read Carla Nelson's social care data paper.


Medicaid programs and other government agencies are increasingly recognizing the critical role of social drivers of health (SDoH) in influencing health outcomes and costs. This is evidenced by work taking place in Medicaid programs across the country to identify and address health-related social needs (HRSNs). For example, 24 states are implementing HRSN waivers, while many others are using other funding mechanisms to drive whole-person care across their communities.

At Findhelp, we’re at the forefront of providing the social care data that can empower the development of more targeted and effective government strategies.

Read on to learn how:

  • States are collecting and standardizing social care data
  • Social care data promotes innovation and drives effective government strategies
  • Findhelp powers social care data collection, analytics and insights



Social care data collection

With ever-improving data collection, standardization, storage, and analytics capabilities, Medicaid programs are ready to ingest social care data. This additional information helps them better understand community needs and HRSN services that promote whole-person care. Findhelp’s platform is used by customers to support different approaches in Massachusetts, New York, and Michigan, among others.

Effective government strategies for social care - encourage data collection.
Incorporating social care data for effective government strategies - the incentivize approach.

This data collection continuum shows the different approaches that Medicaid programs are using to obtain social care data.


Efforts like the Gravity Project, a consensus-driven effort, and CalAIM’s new closed-loop referral reporting requirements are creating standardized data sets. This leads to improved analyses and understanding of needs, outcomes, what’s working, and what can be improved. 



Promoting Medicaid innovation and strategy

Here are just a few examples of what Medicaid programs can do with social care data:

  • Identify High-Need Populations: Pinpoint specific populations facing significant SDoH challenges. For example, a high concentration of searches for food banks or housing assistance within a particular geographic area can signal a population at increased risk.
  • Target Interventions: Address the root causes of poor health outcomes by funding CBOs that provide housing support, nutritional assistance, or transportation services in the communities that need them most.
  • Optimize Resource Allocation: Optimize funding allocations by identifying areas where resources are underutilized or where there are gaps in service.
  • Measure Program Effectiveness: Track the impact of Medicaid programs and interventions and assess the effectiveness of their strategies.
  • Predict Trends: With search trends, agencies can identify emerging needs and proactively address potential health crises. For example, a sudden increase in searches for mental health services may indicate a need for increased support in that area.
  • Inform Policy Decisions: Develop responsive, effective strategies with an understanding of the real-world needs of beneficiaries.



Drive effective government strategies with Findhelp 

The Findhelp platform is used in several states to underpin social care service delivery. Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma (among others) contract with Findhelp to:

  • Connect their agencies
  • Maintain longitudinal records
  • Access a statewide view of HRSNs and referral activity


These states contract with Findhelp to incorporate social care data into effective government strategies.


Data for decision-making

These state partners will use aggregate data generated in Findhelp to support effective government strategies—reporting, planning, and future funding. De-identified search data can inform regional or statewide strategies and public health planning.

Findhelp creates powerful datasets by helping states join HRSN and healthcare claims data. This data can help inform investment decisions, rate increases, risk stratification, and other strategies. It also provides a comprehensive, population-level view. With Findhelp, State Medicaid programs can strengthen their healthcare safety net and work with healthcare and CBO partners to collect HRSN data and improve long-term health outcomes for members.

Download Findhelp's social care data paper



Bridge health and social care

Our platform provides an integrated and seamless closed-loop referral system that bridges the health and social care sectors. While social care data capabilities improve, organizations can take action now to understand community needs and plan for the future. 

Connect with us to learn how your organization can use social care data to identify strategies, make decisions, and assess performance.