Public Health and the Community
Health Plan Collaboration Plans
Public Health and the Community
Health Plan Collaboration Plans
CHS Administration Handbook
Last Revised: January 2014
The recommendations and advice in earlier chapters of this section on public health and the community certainly apply to
health plans and health care providers. There is an additional legal requirement that applies specifically to health plans, which
requires them to have conversations with public health.
The early 1990s saw significant discussions of health reform that included the public health system. During that time, the Department of Human Services was restructuring its public programs for health care, looking to managed care organizations to provide
capitated services under the new Prepaid Medical Assistance Program, or “PMAP.” The Minnesota Department of Health and local
public health departments raised important concerns about how the transfer of Medical Assistance dollars (including administration) from counties to private organizations—organizations typically focused primarily on individual health care—would undermine the ability of counties to maintain important population-level public health activities. Managed care organizations taking
funds for public health care programs should also be expected to take some responsibility for population health.
A key response to this concern was the development of a law in 2001 (Minn. Stat. § 62Q.075) that requires licensed Health
Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and Community Integrated Service Networks to submit a plan to the state health commissioner. This “collaboration plan” would describe how the organization would collaborate with community health boards and
other community health-related organizations to achieve high-priority public health goals in the communities they served.
Health plans were (and are) required to develop their collaboration plans in concert with local public health departments and
other community organizations providing health services within the same health plan service area.
The stated purposes of collaboration plans are to:
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Promote an exchange of information that allows the public and private sectors to begin to identify areas of mutual interest
Focus the collective efforts of the public and private sectors on a few, high-priority health problems in a community
According to statute, collaboration plans must address the following:
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Specific measurement strategies and a description of any activities which contribute to one or more high priority public health goals
A description of the process by which the health plan will coordinate its activities with the community health boards,
and other relevant community organizations servicing the same areas
Documentation indicating that local public health units and local government unit designees were involved in the development of the plan
Documentation of compliance with the plan filed previously, including data on the previously identified progress
measures
In 1995, the first legislatively mandated Collaboration Plans formalized dialogues among public health and organized systems
of health care. As a result, these groups started to develop a common language and to identify and undertake common efforts
to achieve goals that prevent disease and improve the health of the people of Minnesota. They began to build collaborative
relationships, and have learned to appreciate and understand each other’s language, strengths, and positions. Today, health
plans engage in many collaborative activities to achieve public health goals with many community partners.
Collaboration Plans today take the form of a combined plan, prepared by the Minnesota Council of Health Plans (MCHP). The
plan combines into one document an extensive list of committees and regional groups that health plans participate on together with local health departments. The plan also describes the public health work that these committees accomplish and the
public health goals that they are addressing.
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Minnesota Department of Health Office of Performance Improvement
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/opi/
Public Health and the Community
Health Plan Collaboration Plans
CHS Administration Handbook
Regional Public Health / Health Plan Collaboration Groups
Private organizations, especially health plan companies and health systems, can play a strong role, through collaboration with
public health professionals, in achieving shared public health goals. Through the collaboration planning process, local public
health departments and local public health departments have the opportunity to exchange information with the health care
sector about the specific goals they are pursuing, and to discuss (and potentially collaborate on) their respective activities.
As of 2013, three regional groups comprised of local public health departments and health plan representatives are actively
discussing public health goals, strategies, and health plan/public health collaboration. These are:
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The Northeast Public Health Cooperative
The Collaborative for a Healthy Population in southeast Minnesota
The Prairie Regional Health Alliance in southwest Minnesota
You can find more information about health plan collaboration plans online.
Key Resources
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Health Plan Collaboration Plans
Minn. Stat. § 62Q.075 (2001): Local Public Health Accountability and Collaboration Plan
www.health.state.mn.us/divs/opi/
Minnesota Department of Health Office of Performance Improvement
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