Transforming Minnesota's Public Health System

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Transforming the Public Health System in Minnesota
Contact the Joint Leadership Team and Staff

Contact Info

Transforming the Public Health System in Minnesota
Contact the Joint Leadership Team and Staff
LPHA, MDH, SCHSAC

Regional Models to Collect, Use, and Share Local Population Health Data

Transforming the public health system in Minnesota

Minnesota’s regional data models will help provide the staffing, knowledge, expertise, skills, and necessary infrastructure to increase an entire region’s ability to access, collect, use, manage, and share population health data.

Regional data models will help local public health in Minnesota use data to identify and respond to health priorities more quickly and accurately, reducing disparities in data capacity across Minnesota’s public health system.

A strong public health data infrastructure across Minnesota means that, no matter where you live, your local health department can make data-driven decisions to meet your community’s health needs and priorities.

Register: Informational webinar (Oct. 2, 1:00-2:30 p.m.)

On this page
At a glance: Key details about regional data models
Why regional data models? Local, state, and system benefits
Timeline and rollout
Regions
Questions and assistance
Related

 

At a glance: Key details about regional data models

  • Regional data model funding can support up to eight regions. Local public health jurisdictions will  work together to determine regional boundaries and participants.
  • While participation in regional data models is neither required nor mandatory, the goal is to provide statewide coverage through regional data models, to include every local public health jurisdiction that wants to participate.
  • Each region’s model and structure may look different, depending on region and participant needs.
  • Funding supporting regional data models is ongoing and is not competitive.
  • Regional data models support regional infrastructure for staffing, knowledge, expertise, skills, and relationships needed for to local health departments to access, collect, use, manage, and share data. (For example, a regional data model may include a dashboard, but a dashboard alone is not a regional data model.)
  • Regional data models are grounded in collaboration, conversation, and co-creation. Staff and leaders helping steward the regional data models (state, local, and SCHSAC) are committed to moving toward regional models in a manner that prioritizes dialogue and listening. Regional data models will be locally led, locally planned, locally implemented, and locally evaluated.
  • Local public health agencies can expect to learn more about model logistics and rollout in fall 2025.

 

Why regional data models?

What's in it for local public health? 

  • Increases a health department’s capacity to effectively access, use, and share data internally among program areas and externally with local partners and community members
  • Increases local public health’s ability to use data more quickly and responsively to identify and support its community’s health priorities
  • Gives local public health faster access to public health surveillance data to inform and respond to emerging issues
  • Builds  data knowledge, skills, and abilities: An entire region can share infrastructure and FTEs; not every county needs its own analyst/epidemiologist
  • Creates infrastructure for regional data sharing  and collaboration, where each community health board benefits and has a voice
  • Facilitates collaboration and collective problem-solving across a region with others who understand regional opportunities and challenges
  • Builds local expertise, collaboration, innovation, and processes specific and responsive to the regions' unique context, needs, and relationships 

What's in it for MDH, Minnesota's public health system, and Minnesotans?

  • Grows local capacity across the state to access, use, and share public health data, so that no matter where someone lives, they’re covered by a public health department that’s accessing, using, and sharing population health data effectively
  • Reduces geographic and population disparities in data capacity, so that where someone lives doesn’t determine their health department’s level of data capacity
  • Builds trust in public health by responding to data needs and requests more quickly, more effectively supporting collaboration with and requests from policymakers and community partners
  • Demonstrates fiscal responsibility by using limited funds to reduce local staff duplication, capitalize on regional relationships, and leverage economies of scale for population health data
  • Streamlines and reinforces relationships between state and local data experts by building fewer (yet stronger) “bridges” for data across different levels of government

 

Timeline and rollout

2021: The Minnesota Legislature appropriates $6 million annually to identify, test, and expand new ways of building capacity in foundational public health responsibilities.  SCHSAC and the Joint Leadership Team establish the Minnesota Public Health Infrastructure Fund to support locally-led projects that improve, pilot, or strengthen approaches to building foundational capacity, and that can share implications and lessons for the entire state public health system.

2022: Locally-led innovation projects start to explore regional data models in Southeast Minnesota and Northwest Minnesota.

2023-2025: Evidence grows, showing local, regional, and statewide benefits of working together regionally to build public health data capacity. The Minnesota Infrastructure Fund continues to invest in and learn from innovation projects supporting regional data collaboration.

Summer 2025: SCHSAC amends recommendations for the Minnesota Infrastructure Fund, to dedicate up to $1.6 million annually for up to eight regional data models ($200,000 per region per year), on an ongoing basis.

Today: Local and state staff are planning together where, when, and how to roll out regional data models. This includes hosting discussions at regional LPHA meetings and SCHSAC meetings, and in other spaces.

Fall 2025: Local public health, along with support from state staff, engage in regional conversations assessing needs, interest, and facilitating planning conversations with partners.

October 2025: Join regional data model representatives from Southeast and Northwest Minnesota regions to hear about their journeys, and learn more about how the regional data models can build capacity statewide.

Early 2026: Regions begin to form and implement regional models.

 

Regions

Regional data model funding can support up to eight regions. Local public health jurisdictions will determine regional boundaries and participants. 

Each region’s model and structure may look different, depending on region and participant needs.

While participation in regional data models is neither required nor mandatory, the goal is to provide statewide coverage through regional data models, to include every local public health jurisdiction that wants to participate.

 

Questions and assistance

For more information on regional data models in Minnesota, please contact: 

Gabby Cahow
Data Modernization Planner 
MDH Public Health Strategy and Partnership Division
gabby.cahow@state.mn.us 

Kate Ebert
Minnesota Infrastructure Fund Grant Manager
MDH Center for Public Health Practice
kate.ebert@state.mn.us 

 

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Last Updated: 09/08/2025