In the wake of Hurricane Helene, Western North Carolina faces not only the physical and economic challenges of recovery, but also the pressing need for a renewed focus on the state’s already strained early childhood education infrastructure. Childcare teachers are the workforce behind the workforce, enabling families to return to work, businesses to reopen, and vital services to resume. As communities rebuild, it is essential that legislators prioritize policies that strengthen childcare resources to support families’ and businesses’ recovery in Western North Carolina and ensure statewide economic stability and growth.

Across America, 41% of adults struggle with medical bills they cannot pay, a situation that comes with significant financial, emotional and even physical costs, including reduced access to necessary healthcare. On July 26th, 2024 North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and the NC Department of Health and Human Services took a huge step toward alleviating that burden with the introduction of the Medical Debt Relief Incentive Program, which will eliminate medical debt for millions of Medicaid recipients and middle- and low-income residents across the state. 

Learn more about North Carolina efforts to address health-related social needs via Medicaid and CHIP that are paving the way for a new approach to preventive healthcare and chronic disease management via non-medical social interventions, and that could serve as models for other states and Medicaid programs interested in exploring ways to address health-related social needs.

Despite substantial healthcare spending, chronic illnesses remain the biggest threat to premature death and disability, particularly among working-aged individuals. These trends undermine our economy and threaten long-term fiscal and economic well-being in our region, state, and nation. In response, the 2024 WNC Legislative Caucus is committed to addressing three pressing healthcare policy issues: Social Care Delivery Systems, NC Medicaid Expansion, and Workforce Development.

On April 17, 2024, the North Carolina Primary Care Payment Reform Task Force released it’s report on recommendations to increase the amount of expenditures that North Carolina payors (insurance companies, prepaid health plans, etc.) devote to promoting and providing primary care (aka “care aimed at prevention, wellness, and treatment for common illnesses”)

Despite substantial healthcare spending, chronic illnesses remain the biggest threat to premature death and disability, particularly among working-aged individuals. These trends undermine our economy and threaten long-term fiscal and economic well-being in our region, state, and nation. In response, the 2024 WNC Legislative Caucus is committed to addressing three pressing healthcare policy issues: Social Care Delivery Systems, NC Medicaid Expansion, and Workforce Development.