(M6) Addressing Racial Health Disparities: Focus on Medication Adherence

It is often said that the most costly medication is the one that is not taken. Adherence to chronic medications has been proven to be vital in reducing unnecessary health care costs and maintaining overall health.

There are also known racial disparities in medication adherence, possibly due to communication and language barriers, lower health literacy, or a lack of trust in health care providers. As an example, members of the Black/African American and Hispanic populations have been shown to have lower medication adherence than those of other race/ethnic groups. How can managed care organizations address these barriers and improve adherence in the Black/African American and Hispanic populations with the hope of improving their health outcomes?

This session will explore one organization’s journey in addressing the racial health inequities seen among their population and detail the interventions taken to address it. In addition, this session will also share the outcomes associated with their interventions and focus on the learnings and insights of their population that continues to guide their initiatives going forward.