CMS Invites You to Submit Presentation Proposals

Announcing the first CMS Health Equity Conference to be held June 7-8, 2023

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMS, will host the inaugural CMS Health Equity Conference on June 7 – 8, 2023. The conference will convene leaders in health equity from federal agencies, health provider organizations, academia, community-based organizations, and others, both in person and virtually. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to hear the most up-to-date research on health equity, discuss promising practices and innovate solutions, collaborate on community engagement efforts, and share lessons learned.

CMS is now accepting presentation proposals.

A main objective of the conference is to highlight the latest health equity research, initiatives, and best practices.

CMS invites the submission of presentation proposals. Authors of the selected proposals will be invited to present their research on a topic-specific panel and in the poster gallery at the conference. Proposals will be accepted beginning February 27th, 2023, and early submissions are encouraged.

A webinar on submitting proposals will be held on March 16th from 12-1pm EDT. Please register for the webinar by clicking this link.

What should the proposals focus on?

All proposals should be aligned with the CMS Framework for Health Equity 2022-2032. The Framework sets foundation and priorities for CMS’s work strengthening its infrastructure for assessment, creating synergies across the health care system to drive structural change, and identifying and working to eliminate barriers to CMS-supported benefits, services, and coverage.

Proposals must focus on one of the Framework’s five priority areas for reducing health disparities:

• Priority 1: Expanding the Collection, Reporting and Analysis of Standardized Data
  • This could include proposals focused on health disparities data collection, reporting and analysis practices.
• Priority 2: Assess Causes of Disparities in CMS Programs and Inequities in Policies
  • This could include proposals related to CMS programs that address health equity and disparity reduction.
• Priority 3: Build Capacity of Healthcare Organizations and the Workforce to Reduce Health Disparities
  • This could include proposals related to CMS models and demonstrations including the Accountable Health Communities model, Community Health Access and Rural Transformation model and the CMS OMH Minority Research Program.
• Priority 4: Advance Language Access, Health Literacy and Provision of Culturally Tailored Services
  • This could include proposals related to language access, health literacy, health insurance literacy, culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS) standards.
• Priority 5: Increase All Forms of Accessibility to Health Care Services and Coverage 
  • This could include proposals related specifically to overcoming barriers to entering and navigating health care information and facilities.

Presentations should have a clear link to improving the health status of individuals served by CMS programs, such as members of racial and ethnic communities, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQI+ community, individuals with limited English proficiency, members of rural communities, Tribal nations, or geographically isolated areas, or persons otherwise adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.

How do I submit a presentation proposal?

Proposals must be submitted by email to [email protected] on or before April 14th. Please include “CMS Health Equity Conference Proposals Submission” in the subject line. In your email, please include the following:

• The full title of your submission. This will be used for printing in the final program.
• Proposal (max 250 words)
  • Please specify if this is a research abstract, general presentation, or other type of proposal
  • Please specify if you would like to participate in a panel presentation, poster presentation, or both
• Authors and affiliations
  • You MUST enter the names of ALL authors there – including yourself if you are an author – in the order in which you wish them to appear in the printed text. Please include full name, email, affiliation(s), city, state, and indicate which authors are presenting. At least one author must register to attend and present at the Health Equity Conference. You are encouraged but not required to include a CMS speaker or office as part of your panel or abstract.
  • Please indicate what type of organization authors represent
    • Community organization
    • Healthcare delivery
    • Academia
    • Community Advocate/Policy Advocate
    • Federal, State, or Local Government
    • Other (Please specify)
  • Submissions must be approved by all authors to be submitted.
  • Please indicate the priority/priorities of your proposal submission
    • Priority 1: Expanding the Collection, Reporting and Analysis of Standardized Data
    • Priority 2: Assess Causes of Disparities in CMS Programs and Inequities in Policies
    • Priority 3: Build Capacity of Healthcare Organizations and the Workforce to Reduce Health Disparities 
    • Priority 4: Advance Language Access, Health Literacy and Provision of Culturally Tailored Services 
    • Priority 5: Increase All Forms of Accessibility to Health Care Services and Coverage

Authors will receive a confirmation response by email.

Authors will be notified of acceptance to present their research on a conference panel by April 28th.

Note: All presenters must attend the conference in-person on their assigned date, either June 7th or 8th, 2023. Panel presentations will include three proposal authors, each presenting for 15 minutes, followed by a joint 10-minute question & answer session.

What is the proposal review process?

Proposals will be reviewed, scored, and selected by members of the CMS Heath Equity Conference Committee. Proposals must be aligned with the priorities in CMS Framework for Health Equity 2022-2032 and must focus on populations served by CMS programs. Additionally, the conference committee will use the following criteria to evaluate proposals:

• A well-defined statement of purpose
• Clear research methodology
• Research conclusions that advance a health equity priority area from the CMS Framework for Health Equity
• Presentation experience of the primary author
• Inclusion of one or more of CMS OMH’s focus populations

Authors of proposals accepted by the committee will be notified on or before April 28th. Authors must be available to present on a designated panel in-person at the conference.