CHAI
objectives
Addressing health disparities.
CHAI aims to address health disparities by deploying CHWs to assist individuals living in high-priority Zip Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) who are uninsured or at high risk of losing insurance coverage. Priority is given to communities with higher rates of chronic diseases and lower access to primary care. The program has identified these primarily rural areas using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Interactive Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke (2019) and the 2021 American Community Survey.
What are the target populations for the CHAI program?
Individuals living in high priority ZCTAs (Zip Code Tabulation Area) who are uninsured, or at high risk of becoming uninsured, with priority given to communities with higher rates of chronic disease or chronic disease risk factors and lower access to primary care. To determine the higher needs ZCTAs, we utilized diabetes and high blood pressure data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Interactive Atlas of Heart Disease and Stroke (2019). The uninsured rate was derived from the 2021 American Community Survey data. The standardized provider rate information is drawn from the SC Community Health Worker Prioritization Index (2021). Applications must indicate how CHWs will serve individuals living in these areas. CHWs may serve individuals from other areas as well, but the application must indicate how these ZCTAs will be prioritized.
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Aiken 29801
Allendale 29810
Anderson 29624
Barnwell 29817
Berkeley 29436
Charleston 29406
Charleston 29405
Chester 29706
Clarendon 29148
Clarendon 29102
Darlington 29550
Darlington 29532
Dillon 29536
Florence 29501
Florence 29505
Florence 29506
Georgetown 29440
Greenville 29611
Greenville 29605
Horry 29576
Lancaster 29720
Lee 29080
Marlboro 29512
Marlboro 29525
Orangeburg 29048
Orangeburg 29163
Orangeburg 29115
Orangeburg 29118
Richland 29203
Richland 29204
Richland 29201
Spartanburg 29302
Spartanburg 29301
Spartanburg 29306
Sumter 29150
Williamsburg 29590
Williamsburg 29554
Williamsburg 29556
Williamsburg 29056
York 29730
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We are committed to a bold and equitable approach to expanding the CHW workforce in the Palmetto State by using our limited resources wisely. Our decision to fund the identified ZCTAs (Zip Code Tabulation Area) was data driven. There is a need to serve people in all of South Carolina’s 424 ZCTAs. However, we prioritized funding based on evidence-based inequities and are starting with the 40 highest need ZCTAs. Prioritizing these ZCTAs provides an opportunity to build on what we do in future years of this program and to garner additional resources to support more individuals in these identified communities in the years to come. This is only the beginning.
In some communities, there are significant income and health disparities. This means that CHAI may focus on communities that appear to be high-income, but also are home to low-income community members. To begin closing these gaps, we will take a closer look at health disparities in our state and embrace a more equitable approach to serving those that need the most assistance.
