Healthy Way LA (HWLA) was a free public health care program available to underinsured or uninsured, low-income residents of Los Angeles County from 2007 until 2014.
[8] It began enrollment in 2007 in accordance with the terms of the previous Section 1115 Medicaid Waiver, as part of the “Coverage Initiative” for low-income uninsured adults.
[13][14] HWLA enables enrollees to choose a medical home from a list of clinics and health centers operated by the LADHS or its community partners.
[31] The racial and ethnic distribution of HWLA membership differs considerably from the expected enrollment as outlined in the Los Angeles County Coverage Initiative Proposal.
The Department of Health Services anticipated a greater number of Latino enrollees and significantly underestimated the enrollment of African Americans.
[35] Ramsell has also built a specialized contract pharmacy network that ensures access and significant savings on HIV/AIDS medications whose average costs per year are between $12,000 to $20,000.
[41] The second tier offers evidence-based practices, short-term treatment plans, and psychiatric consultations intended for individuals seen in primary care settings.
[49] As a result of the DRA requisites, HWLA organizers had to lower the enrollment goal from 114,000 to 94,000 and allocate funds to aid applicants in obtaining birth certificates.
[51] The unavailability of translated documents, challenges arranging medical appointments, and overwhelming patient and provider paperwork have been cited as aspects of HWLA in need of improvement.
[52] Finally, the County's weak health information technology (HIT) infrastructure has caused poor coordination and continuity of care.
[53] Responsible for creating an electronic medical records (EMR) system, HIT is tasked with improving the coordination and continuity of health information.
As a result, the process of creating a unified county health network has been slowed, physicians are not able to access medical records efficiently, and the delivery of care is delayed.
[55][56] HWLA was one of the primary methods to prepare Los Angeles and the California Medi-Cal system at large for upcoming expansions related to the PPACA.
[58] HWLA was viewed as a key strategy to integrate the health care safety net in Los Angeles into the post-PPACA landscape.
[59] HWLA aims to assist safety net providers in improving care delivery and in becoming partners with Medi-Cal and the California Health Benefit Exchange in 2014.