Although Massachusetts currently has the highest rate of health insurance coverage in the nation, reports suggest health care consumers do not fully understand how their insurance works. Thus, the insured and uninsured populations alike need ongoing support in order to develop health insurance literacy, defined as the degree to which individuals obtain, process, and understand information about health insurance in order to make informed decisions about choosing and using their coverage, which in turn can lead to positive health outcomes. Educating consumers and giving them tools and resources are strategies that advance health insurance literacy. Since 2001, the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation (the Foundation) has awarded over $5 million to community health centers and community-based organizations throughout Massachusetts, through its Connecting Consumers with Care (CCC) grant program, to conduct outreach, provide education and help consumers enroll in health insurance and access primary care. In 2015, the Foundation focused its CCC grant activities to improve health insurance literacy and engage consumers to utilize the health care system more effectively. Grantees have collected data on common measures, using adaptable data collection tools (e.g., brief client surveys), to assess changes in clients\u27 knowledge, confidence, and/or preparedness to better navigate complex systems of coverage and care. The poster presentation will discuss: - the importance of health insurance literacy and its relevance to improving population and community health - strategies currently used to increase health insurance literacy among diverse populations, including successes and challenges - how the impact of these strategies was measured - how assessments were designed to reflect consumers\u27 voices
