Community information exchanges: Michigan 2-1-1 partners with hospitals and utilities to close referral loops

LANSING — At a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing, Michigan 2-1-1 and United Way representatives described deployments of community information exchanges (CIEs) that allow secure, bi-directional electronic referrals across health care, social service and utility systems.

Nicole Uzak, president and CEO of United Way of Bay County, described CIE as "a community led ecosystem of network partners" that uses a shared resource database and integrated technology platform to coordinate care. She said the technology reduces repeat data entry for clients and enables navigators to track whether a referred person actually received services.

Jamie Gaskin and other presenters traced CIE work to emergency and health partnerships, citing integration with MDHHS platforms and earlier work that helped develop the MyBridge platform. Andrew McNeely, manager of energy solutions at Upper Peninsula Power Company, described a utility-focused screening tool built with Michigan 2-1-1 and UPCAP that went live in October 2024 to guide customers to energy assistance and weatherization programs using as few as three to five questions.

Lawmakers asked practical questions about funding and sustainability. Representative Longjohn asked whether community health worker services could be billed under new Medicare/Medicaid billing codes; presenters said they are exploring those pathways and pursuing partnerships with health systems, but noted they are not currently billing those codes.

Presenters said interoperable CIE technology reduces duplicated investments across jurisdictions and allows hospitals and other providers to pre-screen patients and make referrals to 2-1-1 without creating extra work for clinical staff. They added that accurate, frequently updated directories are essential for the CIE to function and that 2-1-1's directory outperformed alternatives in their evaluations.