2022 Mission Impact Volunteer Leadership Award

The 2022 Mission Impact Volunteer Leadership award winner is Dr. Ying Lily Higgins.

Dr. Higgins engaged hundreds of practitioners in Pennsylvania for the March of Dimes Implicit Bias Training program to reduce the negative impact of unintended biases in maternal health care.

She helped successfully advocate to fund the Pennsylvania Perinatal Quality Collaborative, which has achieved membership from 85 percent of all birthing facilities in the state.

Dr. Higgins also works to recruit a diverse volunteer pool from insurers and health care industries.

Whether through advocacy, clinician and consumer education, serving as a media spokesperson, or developing collaborations and partnerships, Dr. Higgins is always ready to support March of Dimes.

As Chief Network Medical Director for AmeriHealth Caritas-PA, a Medical Assistance insurer with 900,000 subscribers in Pennsylvania, Dr. Ying Lily Higgins contracted hundreds of practitioners in Pennsylvania for the March of Dimes Implicit Bias Training program to reduce the negative impact of unintended biases in maternal health care, and she’s looking to expand into 13 states.

Dr. Higgins served on the first PA-March of Dimes committee of clinical leaders who successfully advocated with to fund the start of the PA-Perinatal Quality Collaborative and continues in a leadership role.

She also leads the effort to diversify membership of both the Market Board and the Mission Impact Committee to engage C-level executives in March of Dimes objectives, and works to recruit a diverse volunteer pool from insurers and health care systems to grow into leadership roles as well as reflect the racial/ethnic census of our state.

Dr. Ying Lily Higgins shares her expertise as a pediatrician and an insurer to educate staff and volunteers on maternal and newborn health. She looks for opportunities to incorporate March of Dimes with her work around racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes. She consistently takes on additional responsibilities as a board member; such as chairing the Mission Impact Committee and has enabled our work to continue at a high level even during the COVID-19 pandemic. Whether through advocacy, clinician and consumer education, serving as a media spokesperson, or developing collaborations and partnerships that advance shared mission, Dr. Higgins is always ready and available to support the March of Dimes mission.

Congratulations, Dr. Ying Lily Higgins, winner of the 2022 Mission Impact Volunteer Leadership award!