State Medicaid agencies and public health departments are increasingly finding value in working together to advance shared population health goals. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) 6|18 Initiative offers a practical framework to guide Medicaid-public health collaboration: a set of concrete, evidence-based prevention interventions that improve health and control costs. Over the past two years, Medicaid and public health departments have jointly implemented 6|18 interventions that prevent or control six high-burden, high-cost health conditions — with each agency bringing a complementary set of perspectives, skills and resources to the table. As a result of these collaborations, states have achieved notable successes that enhance the coverage, utilization, and quality of cost-effective prevention practices.

This webinar, made by possible by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, provided an overview of CDC’s 6|18 Initiative and highlighted recent accomplishments from participating Medicaid-public health teams. Medicaid and public health representatives from Colorado and Nevada described key activities, collaboration strategies, and lessons from their efforts to reduce tobacco use and prevent type 2 diabetes under the 6|18 Initiative. The webinar also featured CHCS’ Resource Center for Implementing CDC’s 6|18 Initiative — a new online resource with practical how-to resources, tools, and state examples to help Medicaid, state and local health departments, and other payers and purchasers implement 6|18 interventions. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions throughout the event.