The North Carolina Medical Society supports access to comprehensive, quality care and social supports as necessary to promote health, prevent and manage disease, reduce premature death and preventable morbidity, and achieve health equity for everyone in North Carolina.  This includes meaningful access to:

• Adequate health insurance coverage without incurring burdensome, and often unmanageable medical expenses;
• An advanced medical home that can readily connect individuals to other needed health care providers and social supports;
• A competent health workforce with appropriate geographic distribution and specialized training to provide culturally competent care to diverse populations;
• Evidence-based preventive services that promote healthy behaviors and prevent illness in at-risk populations;
• Reliable, clinically-appropriate access points when care for illness or injury is needed;
• Office and telehealth visits as appropriate.

The North Carolina Medical Society supports the development and deployment of efforts to build a strong social support infrastructure in North Carolina as necessary to improving health and wellbeing, including:

• Accountable care communities, which involve multiple stakeholders working together to improve the health and well-being of their communities by addressing social determinants of health. Stakeholders include health care providers, public health and community organizations.  See NCIOM Accountable Care Communities Task Force Report and Community Guide;
• NC Healthy Opportunity Pilots to test the impact of providing selected evidence-based interventions to Medicaid enrollees.
• NCCARE360, a statewide coordinated care network to electronically connect hose with identified needs to community resources and allow for a feedback loop on the outcome of the connection to the need support(s).
• NCMS Foundation programs to address unmet needs (e.g., Project OBOT NC and Our Community Health Initiative)

The North Carolina Medical Society supports efforts to:

• Expand access to health insurance coverage to close the coverage gap and provide access to health insurance to those at or below 100% FPL;
• Ban or limit short-term health plans;
• Increase publicity and navigator funding for open enrollment; and
• Increase public education about insurance options.