Goals + Strategies
We focus on the pressing health care challenges and opportunities facing Maine today: growing inequities, access to health care and insurance, opioid and substance misuse, quality care for our older and more diverse populations, a health workforce shortage, and pressures on rural health systems.
Ensure equitable access to affordable quality care
Insurance Coverage & Free Care: Promote high quality public and private coverage, while ensuring free care options when needed.
Workforce: Strengthen and expand health, mental health, and dental workforce with a focus on recruiting from Maine communities.
Rural Health: Support rural health care transformation into new systems that coordinate and maintain essential services.
Costs: Promote learning and problem solving regarding economically sustainable health care, particularly rising costs.
Support systemic changes to address critical health issues in Maine
Behavioral Health Care: Help build a robust, trauma-informed, integrated behavioral health system in Maine, especially treatment and recovery for substance use disorders.
Oral Health: Ensure ongoing access to high quality dental care and improve the oral health status of individuals with low incomes.
Advance efforts to improve the health of specific populations
Children: Support efforts to improve the health of Maine children, focusing on early childhood, and infant and maternal mortality.
Older Adults: Improve the health of Maine’s older adults, focusing on health care linked to mental health care, as well as social services and community supports.
Equity: Support groups that experience health inequities to build capacity to improve health in their communities.
Social Determinants: Participate in cross-sector efforts to address social determinants of health (such as transportation, food security, and housing).
Promote shared leadership to achieve equitable health outcomes for everyone in Maine
Public Awareness and Commitment: Build public commitment to achieving equitable health outcomes.
MeHAF’s Leadership: Build MeHAF’s leadership skills and capacity to live out our commitment to equity.
State & Community Leadership: Support efforts to foster equity-minded leadership, to advance access to health care and improve the health of everyone in Maine.