Secretary Aldona Wos and Medicaid Director Carol Steckel are sweeping across North Carolina holding meetings with medical professionals, providers, other professionals and citizens to discuss the Partnership for a Healthy North Carolina initiative.

Candid and productive conversations are occurring in Raleigh and at each stop – Asheville, Reidsville, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, Durham and Greenville – as information is shared, questions are asked and answered, and ideas are exchanged.

“We are encouraged by the level of interest,” Secretary Wos said. “We look forward to accumulating more ideas as we seek ways to bring more efficiency and better care models to Medicaid. It is important for our Medicaid system to look at the person as a whole. Our citizens who rely on Medicaid need to receive the right care at the right place at the right time.”

The conversations being held across the state follow a process that solicited ideas for reform. The centerpiece of the Partnership for a Healthy North Carolina, announced April 3 by Gov. Pat McCrory, is the formation of approximately three comprehensive care entities. These entities will be responsible for coordinating physical and behavioral health care for all Medicaid recipients. They will build or partner with existing providers or networks.