Welcome to the Hub!
A 2022 Maryland law designates the Horowitz Center for Health Literacy as the state's consumer health information hub. You can learn about the Hub's purpose and goals, explore Hub activities, events, and resources, and read media coverage of the Hub.
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The Hub's Purpose and Goals
Purpose
The Hub's purpose is promote and ensure public access to plain language information in preferred languages for public communications about health, health insurance, safety, and social services benefits.
Goals
The Center will help state and local agencies with the plain language requirements through
- training and education
- criteria, certifications and best practices
- templates and model language
- recommendations on health literacy practices
- annual reports to the Maryland Legislature
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Activities
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Events
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Resources
Explore Health Literacy ResourcesHub Media Coverage
Marylanders will soon have a new and reliable ‘hub’ for accessing consumer health information
July 8, 2022 - Published in the Baltimore Sun
Dean Boris Lushniak wrote a commentary the passing of HB1082 in which he discussed the impacts of the bill on the Center's work addressing health literacy concerns in Maryland.
Maryland has, once again, set a national standard to address the health care needs of its residents. This time, we at the University of Maryland School of Public Health, are excited to be at the nexus of this new and innovative approach. Our Horowitz Center for Health Literacy will become Maryland's Consumer Health Information Hub, which has been established by the new law championed by Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk. She recognizes the need to ensure that the public receives clear and useful health information. Our School is proud to partner with her, the rest of the Maryland General Assembly, and the Hogan administration on this new initiative.
As the School of Public Health at the state’s flagship university, we are dedicated to taking on grand challenges and serving the public good in all we do. We educate future leaders, we research what works and doesn’t, and we create and share information and resources that promote health, prevent disease and prolong wellbeing throughout life. The Consumer Health Information Hub is just one example of how we serve the public.
Our Maryland model has several elements. First, the hub will consult with state and local agencies, health and social services providers, hospitals and community nonprofits to ensure their public information in websites, social media, print materials and community meetings meets the highest standards for clear communications. Healthcare providers, in particular, are a vital link with patients and their families and are the most trusted sources of health information.
Second, the hub will provide our students with the opportunity to learn and practice clear health communication methods and prepare them to staff our state and local health departments, community organizations, clinics, and health education programs. Working professionals will gain valuable on the job skills to respond to everyday health concerns like preventing diabetes and heart disease and the extraordinary ones like responding to a pandemic.
Third, there will be an annual report to the General Assembly that lays out progress in serving Marylanders’ with all levels of health literacy. This is critical to improving the health of our residents and addressing health equity.
Maryland consumer advocate Leni Preston expressed the urgent need for clear, accessible and usable health information in a recent Maryland Matters oped. Despite having worked on health care issues for decades, she still found it challenging to navigate the healthcare system after receiving a breast cancer diagnosis. Many more Marylanders with fewer resources face additional barriers that have led to health disparities and structural inequities in our healthcare system today. Addressing these issues will be a focus of the hub's work to meet everyone’s need for information they trust and understand.
The COVID-19 pandemic has painfully reinforced the need for clear messages about public health. Communication missteps by some government agencies and the proliferation of misinformation online led to confusion about health risks and the unfortunate mistrust in reliable sources of information about the SARS-CoV-2 virus. We can and must do better to help people make informed choices to protect their health. Clear communication is critical to building trust and delivering information people can act upon; it can be life-saving.
The hub approach will bolster Maryland’s commitment to improve healthcare quality and lower costs. Our state has been a leader in healthcare innovation, and our one-of-a-kind arrangement with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (known as the “total cost of care model”) aims to transform care delivery by rightly putting patients at the center. The Consumer Health Information Hub will play a critical role in contributing to the model’s success and to advancing health equity in our state.
The School of Public Health welcomes the opportunity to serve all Marylanders with the consumer health information hub. We are committed to a healthier, safer Maryland for all.
New Law Makes UMD’s Horowitz Center for Health Literacy a Statewide Health Information Hub
June 16, 2022 - Published in UMD SPH's News Feed
This article describes the scope and purpose of the law created by HB1082. Center director Dr. Cynthia Baur and health policy expert Leni Preston are quoted speaking to the importance and innovativeness of the new law.
Opinion: Health Literacy – This Is Personal
March 16, 2022 - Published in Maryland Matters
Independent health policy expert Leni Preston wrote this op-ed prior to the passage of HB1082 about the need for the bill. She spoke to the system-wide challenges of navigating the healthcare system and her personal experiences managing her care.
Maryland Bill Aims to Make Center for Health Literacy the State's Consumer Health Information Hub
March 7th, 2022 - Published in UMD SPH's News Feed
This article, written before the passage of the bill, explains the need for a consumer health information hub. Dr. Baur and Dr. Mariam Assi, a legislative staff member of Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk, speak to the ubiquity of health literacy in all health matters, the intended health equity impacts of the bill, and the necessity of a systems-level approach to tackling health literacy issues.
Health Literacy Policy in Maryland
Here, you can read about other proposed and passed legislation concerning health literacy in Maryland.
2022 Medical Assistance Program Dental Coverage for Adults
General Assembly Page Full Text
This law expands Medicaid dental benefits to adults. While not explicitly focused on health literacy, it necessitates clear communication to beneficiaries about what the new benefits are and how they can be accessed. (Passed)
2019 Patient Bill of Rights
General Assembly Page Full text
This law establishes a Bill of Rights for hospital patients and requires hospital administrators to provide every patient with a written copy in plain language as well as provide translation, interpretation, or accommodation for patients who need the Bill in another language or format. (Passed)
2018 Bill to Establish Task Force on Oral Health in Maryland
General Assembly Page Full text
The task force would identify barriers to receiving dental services including the impact of low oral health literacy. (Did not advance)
2015 Health Care Disparities, Cultural and Linguistic Competency, and Health Literacy Recommended Courses
General Assembly Page Full text
This law requires the Maryland Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities to provide a list of recommended continuing education courses to the boards certifying health professionals in the state. (Passed)
2012 Cultural Competency and Health Literacy Act
General Assembly Page Full text
This act requires the Maryland Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities to develop courses with cultural competency, sensitivity, and health literacy, that are designed to address the problem of racial and ethnic disparities in health care access, utilization, treatment decisions, quality, and outcomes. (Passed)