By JEFF BRANDES

To say healthcare’s safety net experienced tectonic shifts in 2025 would be an understatement. The rapid introduction of multiple and massive policy shifts left many healthcare leaders reeling with more questions than answers.

As the industry turns the corner into 2026 and the dust begins to settle, it’s time for stakeholders to respond by leveraging all resources and tools available. Current industry shifts will necessitate structural and process changes that ensure the best health outcomes for all communities.

Foundational to any strategy is a recognition that AI and automation have found their place in countering administrative burden in healthcare, and mainstream use of these tools will help speed the industry’s race to greater value. Care teams that previously spent hours reviewing documentation, identifying risk-adjustment opportunities and organizing population-level insights can now claw back the time needed to get ahead of care gaps.

In 2026, healthcare leaders must acknowledge that new realities are here to stay and will require reimagining how the industry delivers optimal care for vulnerable populations. Safety net organizations that have not invested in automation for managing routine tasks will get left behind in the new world of managing population health. By leaning into the following three strategies, stakeholders can realize the promise of value-based collaboration.

Keeping Medicaid Patients Connected to Care

Sweeping changes to Medicaid eligibility, financing, and administrative requirements will have far-reaching impacts on coverage. Current workflows that address these challenges are complex and overwhelming for many resource-strapped safety net providers—not to mention patients and families.

On the Medicaid front, infrastructures that lean into unified data and integrated workflows can help providers become more proactive in identifying those at risk of losing coverage. Specifically, tools that pair eligibility data with clinical and social risk insights can guide outreach prioritization and patient assistance. In addition, providers can use automation to build multilingual renewal campaigns that personalize patient interactions such that vulnerable populations understand their healthcare options.

Safety net providers are already seeing success with the right strategy. For example, the California Primary Care Association (CPCA) leveraged automation and analytics to mobilize outreach and support Medi-Cal renewals and new enrollments across 38 counites. From January 2024 to June 2025, the initiative reached more than 1.3 million people, achieving more than 159,000 Medi-Cal enrollments and re-enrollments.