Liz Conville (’18) is the Maternal Opioid Misuse (MOM) Model Project Director and Principal Investigator for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation with the Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
Conville manages the commission’s MOM Model, which aims to better align and coordinate the care of pregnant and postpartum Medicaid beneficiaries to individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD) and their infants through state-led delivery system reforms. Enrollment into the new program begins in July 2021.
“The main project I oversee is called the MOM Model, a funding agreement with Texas and the (federal) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation that’s focused on improving care delivery, care coordination, and treatment for pregnant and postpartum women with opioid use disorder,” Conville said.
Substance use is a leading cause of maternal death, as pregnant and postpartum women who misuse substances are at high risk for poor maternal outcomes. Infants exposed to opioids before birth also face higher risk of negative outcomes.
Despite Medicaid covering the largest portion of the charges and services related to maternal substance abuse, barriers stand in the way of delivering care to pregnant and postpartum women with OUD. The MOM model is part of a multi-pronged strategy to combat these issues as it seeks to improve the quality of care and reduce costs associated with OUD, expand access, and create sustainable coverage and payment strategies.
Conville coordinates with clinical partners in Houston, federal partners, and colleagues in Texas Medicaid to ensure required components of the project are submitted on time.
“Since this is a new project, there is a great degree of troubleshooting, designing workflows, and piloting data transfers in anticipation of project enrollment, which begins in July,” Conville said.
Conville joined the Texas Health and Human Services Commission in June 2018, working as a Training Specialist and a Policy Advisor before moving into her current role in March 2020.
“Aspects of the coursework in evaluation and program planning come up all the time,” Conville said, reflecting on her current work and how it relates to her time at the Clinton School. “I also recently had to submit an IRB application for the release of data that will support the federal evaluation of this project, as well as create a driver diagram, similar to a logic model. Both of these experiences brought me back to my CSPS days.”
As a Clinton School student, Conville lived and worked in Quito, Ecuador, while completing her International Public Service Project and Capstone with Novulis, an organization making efforts to bridge the gap of access to healthcare services in Latin America.
In addition to her Master of Public Service, Conville is a graduate of Illinois State University with a degree in print and editorial journalism and Italian studies.
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