WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A team of health planners from Washington state will take part in an eight-state health summit in Washington, D.C., next month to discuss ways state Medicaid programs can develop and implement more effective "medical homes."

The medical home concept is a relatively new approach in healthcare planning. The goal is to put families in regular touch with healthcare providers and to encourage personal involvement in healthcare decisions and prevention techniques.

The National Academy of State Health Policy (NASHP) and the Patient-Centered Primary Care Collaborative (PCPCC) sponsors the meetings. The expenses of the meetings are being covered by a grant from the Commonwealth Fund, which is a partner with the NASHP in developing quality improvements in health care.

"The July 24 - 25 summit will be a learning event designed to foster innovation," said Doug Porter, state Medicaid director and assistant secretary of the Health and Recovery Services Administration in the Department of Social and Health Services. "Our participation recognizes that Washington state is a leader in this area. We have already begun looking for ways to be more effective and promote good health, not just treatments for the sick."

Porter noted that Gov. Chris Gregoire was an early advocate of this concept and made the development of the medical home concept one of the keystones of her Healthy Washington initiatives over the past four years.

Other states invited to the policy summit are Colorado, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Idaho, Louisiana and Oregon.

More information about the Joint NASHP-PCPCC State Medicaid Taskforce is available on the Web at http://www.nashp.org/_catdisp_page.cfm?LID=848479CC-1806-43B4-AB0061F96E2426B3.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND BACKGROUND: Jim Stevenson, Communications Director, HRSA, DSHS, 360-902-7604 (Pager: 360-971-4067).