Informing Strategies for Better Care for Vulnerable Populations in New Jersey

The Center is supporting new analyses of health care utilization and cost to further advance the design of care improvement strategies and policies for low-income, vulnerable populations in New Jersey. These analyses include: 1) deepening understanding of avoidable hospital utilization and cost among low-income patients, with a focus on those covered by both Medicaid and Medicare (i.e., dual eligibles); 2) assessing the role of behavioral health conditions (mental health and substance use disorders) in hospital utilization patterns and costs; 3) exploring correlates and causes of variability in avoidable hospital utilization and cost across low-income communities in New Jersey, with emphasis on the 13 candidate ACO communities; 4) exploring the feasibility of linking detailed information on addiction services and other social services (e.g., housing) to hospital billing and related data, with an eye toward deepening the understanding of the circumstances of high-need individuals in New Jersey's poorest communities; and 5) preparing a data brief on the use of EDs for dental care.