Online Program

276637
Evaluation of a West Virginia health benefit exchange


Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Thomas Bias, PhD, Health Research Center, West Virginia University, Tbias@Hsc.Wvu.Edu, WV
Paula Fitzgerald, PhD, School of Business and Economics, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
Tami Gurley-Calvez, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of Kansas, Kansas City, KS
Emily Vasile, MPAff, School of Public Health, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
Louise Moore, RN, Health Research Center, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV
The state of West Virginia is developing a health insurance exchange in order to partially fulfill requirements of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. It is expected that thousands of residents, many living in rural areas of the state, will take advantage of the exchange and gain access to health insurance coverage. Researchers have developed a five-year evaluation plan to capture changes in health and economic outcomes. This plan also includes a component looking at marketing related issues such as patient literacy, satisfaction, and quality of service. Several barriers and opportunities exist related to this type of evaluation including the rural nature of the population, ability to collect data from electronic health systems, and the fact that the initial enrollment period will be a once in-a-lifetime opportunity to evaluate the effects of the health insurance exchange on population health. We will present the various elements of the evaluation plan including methods of data collection and analyses across health, marketing, and economics. We will also present baseline data gathered on population health in West Virginia and expected outcomes as implementation continues. This information will be beneficial to other researchers and policymakers who are trying to evaluate the effects of health policy on population health.

Learning Areas:

Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Provision of health care to the public
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
Compare various strategies for evaluating the effect of health insurance exchanges on population health. Discuss barriers and challenges as well as potential solutions to evaluation of health insurance exchanges in rural populations.

Keyword(s): Insurance, Access to Health Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the lead evaluator on the evaluation of a West Virginia Health Benefit Exchange that will measure health, marketing, and economic outcomes in West Virginia.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.