Experiences with Medicaid Renewal and Reauthorization Policies in the Context of Child Health and Vaccine Coverage.

Difficulties complying with Medicaid recertification requirements may be responsible for a portion of Medicaid disenrollments and may impact access to preventive care. This study aimed to explore the barriers parents experienced renewing their child's Medicaid, how those barriers impact access to healthcare, and how changes in Medicaid policy can improve child health outcomes. To understand the barriers associated with Medicaid renewal, authors conducted in-depth interviews (N = 24) with racially and demographically diverse parents living in Baltimore. They found that administrative burden, lack of awareness regarding reauthorization, challenges with navigation assistance, and lack of access to the renewal system were crucial barriers to renewing Medicaid. Many participants identified negative impacts on child health outcomes resulting from lapses in coverage, including lack of healthcare access and missed immunizations. Drawing on these findings, the authors provide recommendations for streamlining and clarifying the Medicaid renewal process in Maryland, and the role of social work policy and practice in reducing barriers to renewal.

Communicating Recommendations in Public Health Emergencies: The Role of Public Health Authorities.

Adherence to public health recommendations is critical for public safety and well-being. Effective and appropriate communication plays an important role in whether populations trust government and public health authorities, and the extent to which people follow public health recommendations. Poor trust in communication from public health authorities can pose significant challenges for mitigating public health emergencies and maintaining health security. This study aimed to explore the importance of trust in and understanding of communication from public health authorities in improving adherence to public health recommendations, and how that communication can be improved to develop and maintain public trust, particularly in the context of public health emergencies. To understand which factors are important for public trust in communication from public health authorities, we conducted in-depth interviews (n = 25) with a racially and demographically diverse group of individuals living in Baltimore. We found that communication source and communication transparency, such as timeliness, completeness, and clarity of information, were critical constructs of trust in communication from public health authorities. We also found that many participants misunderstood the flow of information from public health authorities to news media, and many were unaware that public health authorities provide the most reliable source of health information and recommendations during a public health emergency. To ensure adherence to public health recommendations, the public needs to trust that public health authorities are providing accurate, practical, and prudent recommendations. Drawing on these results, we provide several recommendations for developing and optimizing communication from various public health authorities.

MomsTalkShots: An individually tailored educational application for maternal and infant vaccines.

INTRODUCTION: The development and initial assessment in a clinical setting of a theory-driven, individually tailored educational application (app), MomsTalkShots, focused on increasing uptake of maternal and infant vaccines is described. METHODS: MomsTalkShots algorithmically tailored videos based on parent needs to deliver an intervention that was specifically responsive to individual vaccine attitudes, beliefs and intentions, demographics, and source credibility. MomsTalkShots was evaluated among 1103 pregnant women recruited from 23 geographically and socio-demographically diverse obstetrician-gynecologist offices in Georgia and Colorado in 2017. Self-reported information needs were assessed pre-and post-videos and participants self-reported factors related to usability and analyzed in 2018. RESULTS: The vast majority of women reported MomsTalkShots was helpful (95%), trustworthy (94%), interesting (97%) and clear to understand (99%), none of which varied by demographics or parity. Reported usability was slightly lower among vaccine hesitant women, yet the majority reported MomsTalkShots was helpful (91%), trustworthy (85%), interesting (97%) and clear (99%). The majority of women (72%) who did not have enough vaccine information pre-videos reported enough information post-videos. CONCLUSIONS: MomsTalkShots was designed to provide individually tailored vaccine information to pregnant women from a population with varied vaccine intentions, confidence and vaccine concerns. MomsTalkShots was extremely well-received among pregnant women, even among women who were initially vaccine hesitant and did not intend to vaccinate themselves and their infants according to the recommended immunization schedule. Next steps include evaluation to assess impact on vaccine uptake and expansion to adolescent and adult vaccines.