1801-13701

The purpose of this grant is to support the Hawaii Public Health Institute (HiPHI) in facilitating the Hawaii Oral Health Coalition in 2018 with a focus on assessing and expanding coalition membership, mobilizing the coalition to pursue reinstating an adult dental benefit in Medicaid, and improving the public perception of the value of oral health. More specifically, this project builds on existing capacity in Hawaii and will focus on increasing and diversifying membership of the coalition as well as building coalition infrastructural tools such as establishing a coalition Chair and other leadership positions, designing a membership agreement, and documenting a process for decision-making. HiPHI brings two decades of expertise in successfully managing and facilitating coalitions, both statewide and island-based and currently operates a grassroots network of roughly 3000 individuals and 400 organizations that are regularly engaged in advocacy. Included in these infrastructural pieces will be establishing a 2018 legislative agenda for oral health that has a focal point of reinstating the adult dental benefit in Hawaii's Medicaid program. Other aspects of the legislative agenda, as well as development of a strategic advocacy plan will be inclusively designed by the larger Coalition and informed by both grassroots and grass middles partners. Key pieces of the legislative work include pre-legislative session activities, supporting partners in educating legislators during session, and facilitating a post-legislative session wrap-up to plan for next steps. Additionally, as the Hawaii Department of Health finalizes and rolls out the state's first Oral Health Plan in 10 years, HiPHI will play a strategic role in implementing and monitoring progress. This project aligns with the OH2020 Network both in strategy, in facilitating state-based networks for structural change, and outcome, in its approach to expand Medicaid dental benefits for underserved populations. The budget for this project is $25,000.00 which is primarily to support staff time as well as meeting and material expenses.