Community Health Alignment Initiative (CHAI)
What is CHAI?
The Community Health Alignment Initiative (CHAI) is a program established to improve health outcomes for uninsured individuals in South Carolina by expanding the community health worker (CHW) workforce.
Authorized by the South Carolina General Assembly in 2023 through Proviso 33.20 of the Medicaid Accountability and Quality Improvement Initiative, CHAI is a collaborative effort between the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (SC DHHS) and the Center for Community Health Alignment (CCHA). Many of the communities served by CHAI are in rural areas.
As of June 2026:
Click the image below to watch a video about how CHWs help community members access care.
CHAI Supportive Services Provided
Unique ZIP Codes Served
Unique CHAI Participants
Food Insecurity Decreased by 11%
Transportation Insecurity Decreased by 9%
Housing Insecurity Decreased by 8%
Mental Health Challenges Decreased by 5%
“[A CHW] helped me pull the appointments together that I needed...[they] advocated for me [to get] the co-pay [I could afford] because I don’t have health coverage...I have a condition where…I [need] surgeries often. They’ve been very instrumental in aiding me....When I met them, I was malnourished, just depleted…I had to go into the emergency room often… [they] even got me in another program [that provides transportation]…I live in the woods in a shed with no heat, no water. I...became homeless out of nowhere two years ago, and going to the emergency room repeatedly…. [they have] been a tremendous help.”
Objectives
CHAI aims to address health disparities by deploying CHWs to assist individuals who are uninsured or at high risk of losing insurance coverage.
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