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Our Quality Improvement Program

At United Healthcare (UHC), our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We serve Medicaid and MinnesotaCare members in Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, Washington and St. Louis Counties. In St Louis county we also serve members with SNBC, MSHO, and MSC+. And in Scott County we also serve members with SNBC. United Healthcare is always working to improve the quality of the health care and services our members receive. 

How we identify problems and fix them

  • We use tools like data and surveys to find areas or groups of people that need extra help.
  • We work with providers and members to make sure that our members are getting the care they need when they need it.
  • We share health care learning materials with providers and members.
  • We offer financial rewards to encourage better care.
  • Members with complex needs receive extra support from our case managers.
  • We meet with our members in the community.
  • We partner with local groups that support the communities we serve.

United Healthcare Quality Goals

  • Promote population health management programs and activities
  • Improve the member and provider experience
  • Adhere to accreditation and regulatory requirements
  • Serve diverse populations

Quality Improvement Projects

Family and Children

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Seniors

Quality Management Program

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S.T.O.P. COVID Initiative

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, it was clear that there were health differences for BIPOC communities. This was found in both the testing and cases of COVID-19. BIPOC communities were having worse outcomes. This was also found in those going to the hospital, and COVID deaths. We saw that we could use our resources to help address that difference.

We knew that communities know their challenges and understand the help they need. We connected with community partners to better understand what they needed. We planned our response with their input. We built our support on critical community-based groups. We included faith-based groups and included federally qualified health centers. And we included local government. The response needed to be focused on the community.

We found that we could help with the differences in testing. But our communities told us that they needed more than that. They told us to expand the focus beyond testing and provide social support. This included food and safety kits. It also included help in connecting to community organizations. We needed to work with the whole person. 

Our goal was that 50% of those who were tested were BIPOC. We were able to meet that goal with 50% BIPOC individuals taking part.

With Minnesota Community Care, S.T.O.P. COVID initiative delivered over 2,000 vaccines and over 1,000 safety kits in 2020 and 2021. 

We found that being community-focused is needed to make a difference.

We found that we need to bring together local government, providers, and the community. After that we can use our data and technology. Then we can shape our programs to improve health equity and health outcomes. We continue to develop strong local community connections to make a healthy difference. 

Healthy First Start Initiative

We want members to have a healthy pregnancy and healthy baby. Healthy First Start is a program offered through your health plan. We will work with you and your to help you take healthy steps through pregnancy and after delivery. 

After the baby is born, it is important to bring the baby to the doctor. The provider will check things like the baby’s weight, eyes, ears, and heart. When the baby grows older, doctors can help teach parents how to raise a healthy child. This might mean talking about exercise, healthy food, and how to prevent injuries.

Our program helps pregnant members before and after they have their babies. We can help find community resources, medical and behavioral healthcare, give tips for how to have a healthy pregnancy, and offer rewards for visiting the doctor. We help families get the care and support they need when they need it most.

It can be hard to reach members early in their pregnancy if we do not know they are pregnant. We can’t help members if we don’t have the right address or phone number. We ask our members to contact us and their county when they are pregnant or have an address or phone number change. When we and the county have this information, we can sign them up for our program. This makes sure pregnant members receive all the benefits we offer. 

The goal of the program is to have our pregnant members and their babies be as healthy as possible. We look at data related to access of care, health outcomes of our members, and member satisfaction. Data is reviewed on an ongoing basis and each year. An evaluation of the Healthy First Steps® program also happens each year.

We will continue to support our members to get doctor appointments, doulas, access to food, transportation, car seats, and housing. In 2023, we plan to work with doctors in to learn about member pregnancies earlier. Our goal is to help members have healthy pregnancies and remove barriers to care. 

Accreditation

The UHC Community Plan is new in Minnesota. A group called the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) shares information with us on how to improve the quality of health care we provide to members. As a new plan, it is our goal to meet their standards for accreditation. Being accredited means we have made a promise to manage high quality care standards. To learn more about NCQA, visit their website.

Contact Us

We want to hear your questions and feedback! Please contact us if you would like to learn more or share ideas for what we can do better. Contact United Healthcare at 1-888-269-5410 / TTY: 711 or use your preferred relay service 8 am to 6 pm local time, Monday - Friday.