Skip to Main content
AmeriHealth Caritas Family of Companies Company Logo
  • Our Story
    • Our Story
    • Our Mission and Vision
    • Corporate Fact Sheet (PDF)Opens a new window
    • Our Advantage
      • Leaders in Quality Care
      • Awards and Accreditations
      • Our National Footprint
    • Corporate Governance
    • Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
      • Employee Diversity
    Improving lives together

    From the beginning, we've been guided by one philosophy: Help people get care, stay well, and to build healthy communities. Our mission, vision, and grassroots outreach drive our successful care model.

    Who we serve
    Our Story
  • Health Care Solutions
    • Health Care Solutions
    • Medicaid Managed Care
    • Medicare / Dual Eligibles
    • Individual and Family Health Plans
    • Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS)
    • Behavioral Health Care Services
    • Pharmacy Benefits
    Quality services for health plans and states

    With more than 40 years of experience serving Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) populations, we focus on removing barriers to care and getting people the help they need.

    Contact us for new business and strategic partnerships
    Health Outreach
  • Beyond Managed Care
    • Beyond Managed Care
    • Health Outreach Programs
    • Job Placement and Readiness
    • Social Determinants of Health
    • Medicaid Defined
    • What is Managed Care?
    • Addressing the Opioid Crisis
      • Opioid Outreach and Prevention
    • Health Equity
    • Maternal Health
    • Federally Qualified Health Centers
    Our vision

    AmeriHealth Caritas is proud to offer award-winning health plans, but we also work to treat all aspects of our members’ lives. From health outreach to opioid prevention to job training and more, our approach to managed care encompasses the whole person.

    Take a closer look at our health outreach programs
    Beyond Managed Care
  • Members
  • Providers
    • Providers
    • Become a Provider
    • Medical Workforce Shortage
    • Dental Workforce Shortage
    Medical Workforce Shortage

    One of the biggest challenges we face in helping our members is a shortage of qualified medical professionals. Because access to proper care is one of the key aspects of our work, AmeriHealth Caritas is committed to working with both providers and governments to help address this growing crisis.

    Explore how we're helping
    AmeriHealth Caritas Providers
  • Careers at AmeriHealth Caritas Careers
  • News & Media News & Media
  • Contact Us Contact Us
  • Search Website Search
Home   ›   Beyond Managed Care   ›   Social Determinants of Health
Default Text Size

Social Determinants of Health

AmeriHealth Caritas Social Determinants of Health

Health care must be about more than medicine. The conditions in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, and age — factors outside the confines of clinical delivery systems — have a profound impact on health outcomes.

Our understanding of what drives overall well-being is increasingly being informed by the social determinants of health (SDOH). These are factors such as food, shelter, transportation, health care, and social support, which have a direct impact on our ability to survive and thrive.

SDOH can contribute to health disparities and inequities when there are challenges with the accessibility and availability of nutritious food, safe housing, reliable transportation, and quality health care. Promoting healthy choices and lifestyles is not enough to improve health outcomes for vulnerable populations. We must address the socioeconomic conditions creating barriers to life-sustaining resources.

Learn more about how AmeriHealth Caritas addresses health disparities (PDF).

Pathway to wellness and resilience

This a top priority in Medicaid delivery today and it is at the heart of our whole-person care model. We put healthy outcomes at the center of our services by:

  • Integrating physical and behavioral health, as well as pharmacy needs, into a holistic managed care program
  • Collaborating with community-based organizations and other stakeholders to advance population health 
  • Breaking down barriers to SDOH to help improve health outcomes

Partnerships and programs

Medical care is responsible for only 10% to 20% of health outcomes. The remaining 80% to 90% are rooted in social determinants.1 Having conversations about SDOH-related challenges with patients requires a shift in the traditional health care delivery system. 

Our commitment to offering whole-person health care includes proactively helping providers connect patients with resources beyond traditional medical services. This includes:

  • Developing ways to identify SDOH challenges through routine screenings
  • Maintaining a database of community-based resources that we make available to providers
  • Utilizing the provider portal to share member clinical summaries containing actionable data collected across multiple domains

To help close care gaps for particularly vulnerable members, our Let Us Know program is a collaboration between our health plans and the provider community. It helps us identify members who may need outreach and connect them to community-based organizations to assist in their wellness plan and avoid adverse health outcomes.

Connecting members to life-sustaining resources

Screening for SDOH allows us to quickly identify a member’s status as in crisis, vulnerable, or stable, and then take appropriate action, such as:

  • Alerting our Community Care Management teams (CCMTs), including licensed nurses, licensed social workers, and Community Health Navigators, to assist members with complex care needs
  • Making connections to local food banks or homeless shelters
  • Coordinating transportation for health care visits
  • Offering health literacy support

The mission continues

AmeriHealth Caritas is a recognized, national leader in integrated health and coordinated services across the care continuum. Our innovative, community-based programs are aimed at reducing health disparities and addressing the root causes of poverty. Some examples of programs that go above and beyond clinical care include:

AmeriHealth Caritas Social Determinants of Health
  • Transportation: Rides to and from health care appointments are made possible through partnerships with local transportation services.
  • Housing stabilization: Assistance is available to help members navigate the housing system to secure affordable housing through federal, state, and local programs, and we can also arrange modifications to existing housing to meet members' health needs.
  • Emergency food: We help members with qualifying health needs access nutritious meals through partnerships with programs such as the Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance (MANNA) in Philadelphia and Mom’s Meals nationwide.
  • Education and employment: Programs such as Mission GED and Pathways to Work help members prepare themselves for jobs and career opportunities.
  1. Sanne Magnan, "Social Determinants of Health 101 for Health Care: Five Plus Five," NAM Perspectives, Discussion Paper, National Academy of Medicine, Washington, D.C., 2017, https://nam.edu/social-determinants-of-health-101-for-health-care-five-plus-five/.

Others also read

Our Mission and Vision
Our Mission and Vision
Job Placement and Readiness
Job Placement and Readiness
Opioid Treatment
Opioid Treatment
Health Outreach Programs
Health Outreach Programs
AmeriHealth Caritas
Visit AmeriHealth Caritas on Facebook (Opens a new window) Visit AmeriHealth Caritas on YouTube (Opens a new window) Visit AmeriHealth Caritas on LinkedIn (Opens a new window)
  • Find A Health Plan
  • Community Investment
  • Supplier Services
  • Our National Footprint
  • AmeriHealth Caritas Foundation
  • Site Map
  • Developer Portal
  • Transparency in Coverage
  • Privacy Notice
  • Terms of Use
Copyright © 2001- 2025 AMERIHEALTH CARITAS. All rights reserved. Please see Terms of Use and Privacy Notice.
Get Adobe Acrobat Reader