A new evaluation of Summit County’s Benefit Bridge workforce development program, known as NEXT, found that coordinating services through Unite Us, the nation’s trusted technology partner for integrating health and community-based care, is projected to drive $43.7M in public-sector savings over 10 years.

The evaluation, released jointly by Unite Us and the Summit County Department of Job and Family Services (DJFS), follows up on a May 2025 case study that projected $21M in public-sector savings based on Unite Us case data and an estimated increase in household earnings and subsequent tax revenue increases and benefit reductions.1 This subsequent evaluation, using Summit County’s measured participant and earnings data, doubles the original cost savings estimate, highlighting an even larger real-world impact than previously estimated, validated through Summit County’s administrative data.

The updated evaluation found:

  • Participants’ median annual income rose by $12,000 by program exit, generating an estimated $102,930 in public value per participant over the following decade; across 425 program exits, that revises the program’s projected cumulative public-sector savings to $43.7M2.

  • Participants connected through Unite Us created more than twice as many goals and achieved them an average of 23 days faster than participants who weren’t connected through the platform.

“When we started this work, our goal was simple: make sure every taxpayer dollar in this program benefits the families who need it most. This evaluation shows that coordination isn’t a nice-to- have, it’s a critical fiscal strategy,” said Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro. “A projected $43.7M in savings tells other counties and states that investing in the infrastructure to coordinate care pays for itself many times over. We’d encourage any public sector leader serious about economic mobility to take a hard look at what the data here proves.”

The evaluation also underscores how Unite Us technology has strengthened program integrity. Before adopting Unite Us, NEXT staff tracked referrals, payments, and case notes across spreadsheets and email, with no single system of record, making it difficult to verify that services were delivered as intended or catch errors before they became a problem. Now, every referral, case note, and payment lives in one secure, shared system visible to both DJFS and community partner staff, giving the program a clearer account of who received services, what was delivered, and when. That shift gives Summit County a single system of record for referrals and payments, shared documentation that lets services and payments be verified against actual case activity, and clearer audit trails that reduce the risk of duplicate or unsupported payments. For a program distributing public funds to community partners, these added layers of accountability protect both participants and taxpayers.

“A $43.7M projected return tells a powerful story, but what stands out to me is where that return comes from: real people reaching their goals faster and building long-term self-sufficiency and financial stability,” said Unite Us CEO and Co-founder Taylor Justice. “Summit County’s NEXT program is proof that coordinated care isn’t just good policy. It’s strong economics.”

Across the NEXT program, participants saw meaningful improvements in employment, financial stability, and reduced reliance on public assistance, a reflection of the strength of Summit County’s whole-person workforce development model. This evaluation shows that when local governments pair that model with the infrastructure to coordinate it, the results compound: faster progress for participants, stronger safeguards for public funds, and a return on investment that other leaders can point to as evidence this approach works.

Read the full evaluation here.

About Unite Us

Unite Us is the nation’s premier technology provider for integrating health and community-based care. Our proven product suite is used to proactively identify needs using advanced analytics, coordinate services between sectors in real-time, streamline referral and case management, and facilitate eligibility assessments and reimbursements across government, healthcare, health plans, and community organizations. The first of its kind, our closed-loop referral system prioritizes privacy and dignity and has integrated data and analytics tools used to measure impact, optimize programs, and shape policy. With over 2.1M services, we host the nation’s largest network of community-based health and economic services dedicated to improving whole-person health. Learn more at UniteUs.com and LinkedIn.

About Summit County

Summit County is the fourth largest county in Ohio and home to over 540,000 residents. County Executive Ilene Shapiro is serving her third term as Summit County Executive. As Executive, she leads ten unique departments and serves as the chief fiduciary officer for the County. In holding this office, Executive Shapiro strives to make a positive impact on the lives of all Summit County residents. She is the first woman in Ohio to serve as county executive. Learn more at co.summitoh.net/Executive.

1 https://www.atlantafed.org/research-and-data/data/cliff-tool

2 Savings include foregone public benefits and additional tax revenue generated through higher wages.

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