Health Initiative Senior Director, Health Plans

ABOUT THE HEALTH INITIATIVE

It is well-established that 80% of a person’s health is determined by factors outside the doctor’s office — healthy food, safe housing and a livable income. Yet our healthcare system is built backwards, with more than 99% of US healthcare dollars spent on medical care alone. The amount of money going toward healthcare is huge — the US government and private health insurance companies spend $10.7B on healthcare every day.

This is projected to grow 6% annually through the next decade, despite recent safety net cuts. But what exactly do we get for all this healthcare spending? Right now, the US has some of the worst health outcomes across all high‑income countries, including for preventable heart disease and obesity, which cost the system nearly $500B each year. This is inefficient and leaves people behind, especially low‑income children and families.

But what if our healthcare system was built to pay for health, not just healthcare? What if it moved dollars upstream to pay for the basics people need to get and stay healthy, like safe housing and nutritious food? The result would be a win‑win‑win:
Children and adults would have better access to healthy food and safe housing and, as a result, have better health outcomes. When healthier patients use less care, the government saves money–and insurance companies’ revenues increase –incentivizing both to pay for these basics.

The Health Initiative (THI) is a national organization that crosses political divides, taps market forces and activates stakeholders to shift dollars toward health. By providing strategic guidance and technical assistance, we activate healthcare institutions to move dollars into the hands of patients and communities to pay for food and housing—improving health outcomes for those most at risk and reducing overall healthcare costs.

Since 2018, THI has used our playbook to spur healthcare institutions to spend nearly $1B in healthcare dollars on food, housing and other basics. For example, we supported North Carolina to use Medicaid dollars to provide patients with groceries, rental assistance and other basics, keeping them out of the hospital and saving the state a net $1,020 per person per year.

THI also advised a Fortune 25 insurance company on how to provide food and housing benefits for 22K high‑risk patients (87% living on less than $20K a year) and to design an evaluation which found that those receiving higher benefits have lower healthcare costs.

THI maintains a diversified revenue base which enables staff stability, long‑term planning, and meaningful impact.

The Senior Director, Health Plans, is a key member of the THI Leadership Team and responsible for efforts to unlock existing dollars within health plans to invest in the drivers of health. This role will be creative in re‑imagining how plans can move towards that goal and persuasive in communicating this approach to others. The Senior Director will lead a cross‑functional team (aka a ‘swim lane’) to achieve THL’s goal within various plans and has three primary responsibilities:

• Lead THI’s effort to activate health plans including generating creative yet practical ideas on how to invest in the drivers of health, establishing the business case and securing contractual agreements with plans to conduct the work.
• Set swim lane goals and strategies to achieve those goals, adapting as necessary.
• Mentor team members and ensure activities are flawlessly executed.

A successful candidate will thrive in the fast‑paced context of issue‑based campaigns and/or start‑up environments. They must demonstrate excellence in relational instincts, attention to detail, and communication skills.

The position reports to the Chief Operating Officer on an interim basis, and works closely with the Co‑Founders and Co‑CEOs, Rebecca Onie and Rocco Perla. As part of a small organization, the Senior Director, Health Plans may or may not have direct reports at any given time but will be responsible for leading a cross‑functional team to ensure the strategy is executed well.

This includes program staff such as Research Associates and a to‑be‑hired Director of…