As the number of individuals in the United States with chronic conditions and the associated costs in caring for these individuals continues to rise, there is a need to transform how health care services are delivered. Under Section 2703 of the Affordable Care Act of 2010, the federal government provides state Medicaid programs the opportunity to improve care coordination for people with chronic conditions in a person-centered approach through the establishment of health homes. Given the complexity of care for Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic conditions, addressing the social determinants of health and providing integrated care are central to effectively improving health outcomes and generating cost-savings. Although launching a health home model is a step toward improving care coordination and care management for high-risk individuals, there are myriad components to implementing such a program. The purpose of this article is to explain the process that Michigan policymakers undertook to implement its Section 2703 Medicaid health home initiative, named the MI Care Team. The authors present lessons learned for policymakers and stakeholders in other states seeking to implement a Medicaid health home and explain how the nursing profession is integral for health homes.

While the nurse is the optimal provider for this position, the nurse's defined role in this process is not always clear. This article focuses on the term care coordination, which includes the definitions of care coordination, impact on nursing, attributes, antecedents, consequences, and empirical referents for this term. Care coordination is also differentiated from case management to add clarity to the role.

BackgroundMillions of Americans have tested positive for COVID-19. The illness has a range of clinical symptoms with varying degrees of symptom severity; there is limited research about the lived experience of having COVID-19.ObjectiveThe study aim was to understand the lived experience of having COVID-19, provide detail on the length and severity of symptoms as well as coping mechanisms of those with the illness, and identify issues individuals face when accessing healthcare.MethodsThis phenomenological qualitative study included semistructured interviews of 45 people ages 18 years and older living in the United States who tested positive for COVID-19. Inductive content analysis was employed for subjective interpretation of the text through a systematic coding classification to identify themes for analysis and conclusions.ResultsThis study details a variety of symptom presentations of individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 as well as mental health concerns related to fear and living with COVID-19.DiscussionIndividuals expressed varying emotions when finding they tested positive for COVID-19. Many conveyed fear of having COVID-19 and indicated it was a traumatic experience. This fear is an important clinical finding that policymakers and providers should consider when treating acute and chronic COVID-19 patients. Finally, many participants, commonly referred to as “long haulers,” experienced ongoing and lingering symptoms highlighting an area in need of further research.