NORTH CAROLINA — A pilot program designed to use Medicaid funds on non-medical needs — food, housing and transportation needs — was discontinued last year, but a study found it decreased healthcare costs statewide.
North Carolina’s Healthy Opportunities Pilot (HOP) program reduced on average $164 per month for the state’s Medicaid beneficiaries, according to the results of a study conducted by the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina.
The program was founded in 2022 and overseen by North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services authorized it to continue through December 2029. The goal was to provide food, transportation, housing services and other supportive non-medical programming, with the goal to thwart stress and prevent unwanted health challenges. It also drove down healthcare costs.
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Costs increased at the beginning of the program, but savings were effective over time. According to NCDHHS, HOP had healthcare savings anywhere from $1,000 to almost $2,000 annually per enrollee, showing a strong return on investment.
“Healthy Opportunities Pilots improved the health and well-being of participants and drove down costs for the state,” NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai said in a press release. “Addressing non-medical drivers of health like food, transportation, and housing improves quality of life and, by investing those dollars in local services, we build economic opportunity and stronger communities.”
There were $650 million in federal and state Medicaid matching funds authorized over a five-year period, but last July the North Carolina General Assembly did not provide additional funding due to the budget stalemate. It effectively froze $175 million, stalling the program’s continuation.
Around 31,000 Medicaid enrollees that participated in the study from 2022 to 2024 received food boxes, transportation and housing support.
Though not associated with the study, HOP helped 4,200 people in New Hanover County, according to previous Port City Daily reporting.
Not only providing monetary savings, the study found the program’s implementation resulted in fewer emergency department visits, hospital stays and determined there were more visits to less-expensive outpatient providers or primary care practices.
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