Health Practice Tools

Social workers can support consumers to secure health insurance coverage now through January 15, 2025. 

The 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule details services that social workers can provide to address health-related needs for Medicare Part B beneficiaries. This resource describes Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) Risk Assessment, Community Health Integration (CHI) Services, and Principal Illness Navigation (PIN) Services. It clarifies the role of social workers in delivering these services to support patients with medical and social needs.

NASW’s Task force for School Social Work Practice Standards is seeking public comments for the attached document: Best Practice Standards for School Social Workers. The document provides a useful set of standards for school social workers seeking specific information related to school social workers. Your comments are important and will determine how the task force moves forward. The public comment period begins February 6 and will end March 8.

NASW is a member of the American Cancer Society’s National Navigation Roundtable and contributed to this publication that describes responsibilities at the Entry, Intermediate, and Advanced levels for patient navigators, nurse navigators, and social work navigators.

NASW is developing a task force for the revision of the 2013 Child Welfare Standards. NASW reviews and revises these standards to incorporate and update the best practices in the field of Child Welfare.

This is an important year for social workers to help individuals connect to health insurance coverage as states conduct Medicaid and CHIP redeterminations and process disenrollments. Social workers can communicate the value of health insurance coverage and help clients connect with local assistance to apply for coverage that fits their needs. Open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act health insurance marketplace begins November 1^st 2023 and goes through January 15^th 2024. To secure coverage for January 1^st 2024, individuals must enroll by December 15^th 2023.