Tackling Hypertension in Medicaid Through Community Partnerships with Dr. Kara Odom Walker

Summary

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Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

Episode: Tackling Hypertension in Medicaid Through Community Partnerships
Guest: Dr. Kara Odom Walker, Chief Medical Officer, Aetna Medicaid
Host: Elizabeth Caslo
Release Date: March 14, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode spotlights Aetna Medicaid’s innovative partnership with the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) to address hypertension in Medicaid populations. Newly appointed Chief Medical Officer Dr. Kara Odom Walker discusses the rationale behind the collaboration, its early progress, and the potential it holds for addressing both health and social drivers in underserved communities.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Dr. Kara Odom Walker’s Background and Role at Aetna

• Dr. Walker introduces herself as Aetna’s new CMO for Medicaid.
• She highlights her unique perspective, blending prior roles as a family physician, provider, and state Secretary of Health and Social Services.
• Quote [01:01]:

  "It's an opportunity to really blend the intersection of clinical care and prior experiences I've had on the provider side and also as a state Secretary of Health and Social Services into finding solutions to transform healthcare at scale."
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Motivation for the Hypertension Collaboration

• Uncontrolled hypertension is cited as a major, preventable cause of early death and long-term complications among Medicaid members.
• Community health centers serve one in seven Americans, including the most complex and underserved populations.
• The choice to collaborate is driven by community health centers’ reach and holistic approach, addressing both medical and social needs (e.g., access to diapers, medicine, transportation).
• Quote [01:36]:

  “Now more than ever, we need ways to reach patients and communities with the greatest opportunity to improve disparities in hypertension outcomes.”
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Scale, Target Regions, and Future Expansion

• The partnership targets four states with significant unmet needs: Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, and Virginia.
• These states were selected for their pronounced health gaps and existing strong partnerships.
• Aetna aims to use pilot learnings to scale and replicate successful models nationwide.
• Quote [04:17]:

  “Once we find what works, we can create scale around spreading what is possible and create even larger impact beyond those four states in the future.”
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Approach: Integrating Clinical Care and Social Determinants

• Aetna’s approach is “data first”: identify needs, leverage insights, and deploy targeted interventions.
• The collaboration brings care to where people live, using the unique strengths of community health centers (integrating primary care, dental, and behavioral health).
• Focus extends beyond prescriptions to holistic care—nutrition, physical activity, and social support.
• Memorable patient story [06:04]:

  “He really had no complaints and no drama…but unfortunately when we checked it again, his blood pressure was still sky high…He hadn't really seen anyone in health care for years, felt great, worked full time.”
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Addressing Access and Social Barriers

• Early program insights highlight persistent barriers: difficulty making appointments, social issues like food insecurity, and lack of knowledge.
• Anecdote about a patient managing blood pressure but impeded by high-sodium canned vegetables, illustrating real-world challenges.
• Quote [08:43]:

  "We're going to find community health centers bring that community lens, that community voice, and they're deeply embedded to figure out how to make sure we're talking in the ways that resonate with patients, that they feel like they actually can put their health into their own hands."
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Broader Chronic Disease Initiatives

• While hypertension is the current focus, Aetna aspires to address other chronic and high-impact conditions in Medicaid, such as diabetes and obesity.
• Dr. Walker teases future ambitions in maternal health, leveraging lessons learned from this program.
• Medicaid members often have multiple coexisting chronic conditions.
• Quote [10:07]:

  “Three in four adults enrolled in Medicaid have one or more chronic conditions. Not just high blood pressure, but others. So we're going to work together around how the whole care team can come together to design a plan that that’s right for them…”
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Reflections and Call to Action

• Controlling blood pressure delivers significant health and financial returns, especially in Medicaid populations.
• The backbone role of community health centers and potential for partnerships to drive equity, quality, and reduced total cost of care.
• Quote [12:52]:

  “For me personally, this is a chance for us to think about scaling and broadening that through partnership, addressing those social drivers of health and improving not only quality, but also equity and total cost of care.”
  — Dr. Kara Odom Walker

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On the scale of community health centers [02:30]

"We know that community health centers are actually the largest primary care system in the United States. They serve one in seven Americans, including some of the nation's most complicated patients in the most underserved and needy communities." — Dr. Walker

On the real-life impact for patients [06:25]

"Half of adults in the US have high blood pressure, and 1 in 4 don't know they have it. Our work together isn't about technology or how Aetna pays the bills, but it is about how do we talk to people, really think about what they need..." — Dr. Walker

On future possibilities and commitment [12:52]

"[This is] a chance for us to think about scaling and broadening that through partnership, addressing those social drivers of health and improving not only quality, but also equity and total cost of care." — Dr. Walker

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Important Timestamps

• [01:01] — Dr. Walker’s background and vision at Aetna
• [01:36] — Rationale for Aetna’s partnership with NACHC to address hypertension
• [04:17] — Why target Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Virginia (selection criteria and expansion goals)
• [08:43] — Social and access barriers in hypertension management; early insights and anecdotes
• [10:07] — Broader strategy for chronic conditions & aspirations for maternal health
• [12:52] — Final takeaways on partnership, scaling, health equity, and community impact

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Conclusion

Dr. Kara Odom Walker underscores Aetna Medicaid's commitment to meaningful, community-driven solutions for hypertension—uniting clinical care, data insights, and social supports. The partnership with NACHC is both a practical response to immediate health disparities and a model for future, scalable health interventions in Medicaid and beyond.

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Transcript

[A]

This is where health insurance leadership comes together. Becker's fourth annual Spring Payer Issues Roundtable brings together over 400 payer and health plan executives and more than 100 speakers to Chicago April 13th and 14th. This year's event includes keynote conversations with the industry's top leaders and former President George W. Bush. For the full agenda and event details, visit Beckershospitalreview.com and click on the Events tab in the upper right. We're looking forward to hosting you here in Chicago.

[B]

Hi everyone, this is Elizabeth Caslo with the Becker's Payer Issues podcast. I'm excited to be joined today by Dr. Kara Odom Walker, who recently became Chief Medical Officer for Aetna Medicaid. And we're going to chat about the insurer's collaboration with the national association of Community health centers. So, Dr. Walker, thank you so much for joining us today.

[C]

Thanks for having me.

[B]

So, before we jump in, I would love to hear a bit more about you and your healthcare career and your new role at Aetna.

[C]

Thank you so much. I'm so excited to join Aetna CMO of Medicaid. It's an opportunity to really blend the intersection of clinical care and prior experiences I've had on the provider side and also as a state Secretary of Health and Social Services into finding solutions to transform healthcare at scale. And Aetna is part of that journey. I'm really excited about this partnership as well.

[B]

Yeah, so let's dive into the bulk of it. What prompted this collaboration, which is focused on hypertension, between Aetna and the national association of Community Health Centers and why now?

[C]

So I'm so thrilled to share more about the news of this collaboration. Now more than ever, we need ways to reach patients and communities with the greatest opportunity to improve disparities in hypertension outcomes. I'm a family doctor by background and as Aetna leader, I know the facts. We know that uncontrolled hypertension is a significant preventable cause of early death and long term health issues that can occur among our Medicaid members. And I used to practice in a community health center across the country from the east coast to the West Coast. It's a place where we can make a huge impact as doctors as a payer partner. So working alongside nac, the national association of Community Health Centers, is a great opportunity for us. We know that community health centers are actually the largest primary care system in the United States. They serve one in seven Americans, including some of the nation's most complicated patients in the most underserved and needy communities. We get to address together not only the medical needs, but also the other social needs that community health centers are so great at. I remember taking care of patients who really needed us to navigate to diapers and medicine and transportation and, and the full range of things that we know actually make people healthier. So this is our opportunity. We know over 6 million patients had hypertension in 2024. And achieving better blood pressure control in about two thirds of those patients is a huge opportunity for us that is actually real scale results at scale in settings where we need more than ever to address these long term health consequences. So because of the success, we know that community health centers have to improve blood pressure control. We at Aetna saw this opportunity to collaborate to bring our data and to improve blood pressure control and deliver these value based outcomes at scale across communities. Urban, rural, north, south, east, west. And we know that these partnerships really matter. Excited that together we're going to focus on regions where the data has showed that we need to address the gaps in improving health outcomes. We're starting with four states, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Virginia. And really excited about all the opportunities ahead.

[B]

Can you elaborate on why those states and where you plan to expand, if you are planning on expanding?

[C]

Absolutely. So we know that these states have the greatest need. And as part of our engagement, we've already thought about which populations have the greatest gaps to improve those outcomes and also where we can bring our skills, our data, our relationships to bring impact. This initiative focuses in these four states because we've seen the gaps are the widest. But also we have strong partners that we can work together to bring data, tools, expertise, and once we find what works, we can create scale around spreading what is possible and create even larger impact beyond those four states in the future.

[B]

Makes a lot of sense. So can you elaborate a bit more on what you're seeing in terms of hypertension in Aetna's Medicaid community and what health and cost outcomes you're hoping to see through this partnership? Absolutely.

[C]

So we're starting with the data. You know, the data is showing us where to get started and we're going to leverage our Aetna data and the Medicaid expertise we have. This is just basic, right? We start with what works and then do more of it so we can go beyond care that's just about prescribing a medicine, but also lean into all of the other community resources. As I mentioned, we know there are so many people who need help both with diagnosing high blood Pressure, but also finding out how to manage it better. And this is a daily journey. It can include nutrition, it can include physical activity, but also the medications and things that happen in a doctor's office. We're excited that working together with community health centers, our collaboration can bring care to where people live, to things that are community informed, and really bring a whole suite of services together. Since community health centers do make up the largest primary care health system in the United States, where 52 million people are served, this is an opportunity for scale and impact. Community health centers bring together primary care, dental care, behavioral health care, and we know those factors actually influence blood pressure control. So how do we work together? I'm a family physician, and I have personally taken care of many patients in community health centers. I worked in the west coast and east coast from Delaware to California, and seen how uninsured patients in local primary care settings often don't know they have high blood pressure. I remember one of these patients distinctly. They came in to see me. Dr. Walker, I just need these papers signed. I'm about to start a new job. It's a great opportunity for me to have higher pay and better, better benefits. Can you just check, check these boxes? And he really had no complaints and no drama. But he unfortunately had come in, in kind of a hurry. And so we checked his blood pressure and thought it must have been wrong. Sometimes that means as a doc, like, we have to give them a moment, settle in, maybe check with a proper size blood pressure cuff. That happens sometimes. So. So in this situation, I thought we'll just check it again. Unfortunately, when we checked it again, his blood pressure was still sky high, so high that I was worried about risk of stroke, heart damage, and other consequences. So we worked together in that moment. And he hadn't really seen anyone in healthcare for years, felt great, worked full time, and wanted to think about these certifications. So this is a situation that's very real. It happens all over community health centers every day. It's very common. Half of adults in the US have high blood pressure, and 1 in 4 don't know they have it. Our work together isn't about technology or how Aetna pays the bills, but it is about how do we talk to people, really think about what they need and have these ongoing relationships to improve their health, improve blood pressure control, but also reduce heart attacks, strokes, and other consequences.

[B]

What early insights are you seeing? I know again, it is early on with this program. And how are you reaching the Medicaid population given challenges that may be specific to those Populations.

[C]

Thanks, Liz. We're just getting started, so I don't have a lot of details to show about the early opportunities, but I would say we have a starting place that comes to a common understanding around how important it is to focus on this issue and, and that there are barriers to care, barriers around access, getting appointments, social issues. Thinking about food insecurity, you know, I again remember patients who said, well, I've been really taking that blood pressure pill, Dr. Walker, but you know, I can't figure out how to get my blood pressure to get lower. And we did a review of what they were eating every day, trying to make sure they had healthy options, realizing the cans of vegetables had a lot of sodium and that was what we needed to unlock blood pressure control at a better level. And so these are the barriers. We're going to find community health centers, bring that community lens, that community voice, and they're deeply embedded to figure out how to make sure we're talking in the ways that resonate with patients, that they feel like they actually can put their health into their own hands. This collaboration is exciting and we're looking forward to sharing results in the future.

[B]

That's a really interesting insight about the food. And pivoting away from hypertension, what other conditions is the Aetna Medicaid team thinking about collaborating on going forward?

[C]

So we're focused on high blood pressure. High blood pressure seems maybe common, easy and happening in so many patients lives that it should be easy. I will say right now it is our focus. Aetna Medicaid is committed to the health and well being of our members. And so we're thinking about expanding in other places. But first, thinking about heart health as a major opportunity is where high blood pressure fits in. So think about it. Three in four adults enrolled in Medicaid have one or more chronic conditions. Not just high blood pressure, but others. So we're going to work together around how the whole care team can come together to design a plan that that's right for them and allow them to think about the chronic conditions that may exist that could be blood pressure, but then it could build on diabetes, obesity, other chronic conditions that are present. So we're starting with hypertension because it does lead to other things. Again, preventing heart attacks, preventing stroke, preventing other long term outcomes. It actually improves your joint pain as well. And so it is something that we can focus on. We know that in looking at the total cost, it also stands out as something that we can make an impact on. In April of 2025, we saw that Hypertension related health care costs totaled over $100 million. This is a place where we can start. I would say once we get that underway and start to see outcomes that matter in different communities, we'd love to start dreaming big. Maybe we work on maternal health together because we we know that maternal health today is something that we can do so much more to make sure future moms have the right health care access from pregnancy to birth. And we'll find things that are working for hypertension, but then can apply to better prenatal care and taking care of moms and babies in the future. This will let us think about how to partner, how to bring the best evidence, but also bring our tools around data and overcoming other barriers. And some of that is around access to primary care. But then we can think about how does nutrition, transportation, housing and stability also play a role in those rates.

[B]

And a little shameless plug to our listeners. I did just do a podcast on maternal health initiatives with Medicaid programs, so if you are more curious about that, we have some recordings available there. But Dr. Walker, as we wrap up, I would love to hear any final takeaways you have for other Medicaid leaders and also broader insurance leaders and also any thoughts as you're setting settling into your role at Aetna.

[C]

Well, I'm so excited to be part of a team that has commitments to work with partners in communities of need. And we know that controlling blood pressure is one of the places where we can create the highest level of return on health and outcomes, particularly for patients on Medicaid. Right now, we are just thrilled to lean in with this partnership with NAC to improve health and health impact. Community health centers and primary care providers are the backbone of how we provide care across the country and they've already proven outcomes in hypertension control. So this is a chance for us at Aetna to make an impact. For me personally, this is a chance for us to think about scaling and broadening that through partnership, addressing those social drivers of health and improving not only quality, but also equity and total cost of care. I'm excited about the collaboration because we know we are open to future collaborations, no matter what sector, to make everyone healthier.

[B]

Dr. Walker, thank you so much for taking the time and joining us today.

[C]

Thank you, Liz. It's great to see you.

[B]

Yeah, great to see you as well. And to our listeners, if you'd like to listen to more Becker's healthcare podcasts, you can visit Beckershospitalreview.com thank you.