Brockton Health Center Awarded $40,000

BrocktonPost
BOSTON--Brockton Neighborhood Health Center was among 24 community organizations in Massachusetts who were awarded more than $1.2 million in grants from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation.
These grants, announced Nov. 8 in a prepared statement, include $40,000 to Brockton Neighborhood Health Center which will use the money to provide outreach and individual assistance with applications, referrals to primary care providers, education on health plans, and assistance with annual renewals.
The program will focus particularly on assistance to those attending local food pantries and being released from the Plymouth House of Corrections.
“Our grantees’ efforts have ensured health care access and improved the system for thousands of Massachusetts residents,” said Sarah Iselin, President of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation. “We look forward to their new approaches to addressing coverage and affordability in their communities.”
The foundation made the grants to organizations whose missions are dedicated to promoting the health care needs of uninsured and low-income residents.
The grants range from $40,000 to $75,000 per year, and represent the first of two years of funding.
The grants were made in two grant program areas, Connecting Consumers with Care and Strengthening the Voice for Access, both of which were created in 2001 when the Foundation first began its grantmaking efforts.
Connecting Consumers with Care provides programmatic support to organizations that will provide comprehensive outreach and enrollment services, an enhanced approach to educating consumers on effective navigation of the health care system, and strategic collaboration with the advocacy community to identify and address barriers that prevent consumers from easily accessing coverage and care.
Strengthening the Voice for Access provides core operating support to organizations that will strengthen community-based policy activities, increase citizen participation in public policy development, and promote collaboration among statewide policy and advocacy organizations on coverage and affordability.
The complete list of grant awards is as follows:
Connecting Consumers with Care

Boston:

1. Boston Public Health Commission $40,000

The Boston Public Health Commission will use funds to train staff of city agencies and consumers on how to navigate the health care system and a newly launched web-centric resource database will be developed to help locate referral organizations. Customized 'My Health Portfolios' will educate consumers on facts to consider when obtaining health
care and topics.

2. Whittier Street Health Center $40,000

Whittier Street Health Center will use funds to provide enrollment and redetermination assistance through 'Virtual Enrollment Sites' and make referrals to services at Whittier and partner organizations. A yearly redetermination education campaign will include educational workshops and fliers/brochures based on MassHealth's guidelines.

Brockton:

3. Brockton Neighborhood Health Center $40,000

Brockton Neighborhood Health Center will use funds to provide traditional outreach and individual assistance with applications, referrals to primary care providers, education on health plans, and assistance with annual renewals. The program will focus on local food pantries and the Plymouth House of Corrections.

Everett:

4. Joint Committee for Children's Health Care in Everett $40,000

The Joint Committee for Children's Health Care in Everett will use funds to provide outreach, interpretation, application assistance, and scheduling support. The program will target children and their parents, particularly Latino and Haitian immigrant populations.

Fitchburg:

5. Community Health Connections $40,000

Community Health Connections will use funds to provide street outreach, and one-on-one application and enrollment assistance to children and adults who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, as well as members of the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking communities.


Hyannis:

6. Community Action Committee of Cape Cod & Islands $40,000

Community Action Committee of Cape Cod & Islands will use the funds to provide residents of Cape Cod and the Islands with enrollment in public health insurance programs. The program will focus on recently unemployed residents or those whose employers have eliminated health benefits or raised employee contributions beyond their ability to pay.

Lynn:

7. Lynn Community Health Center $40,000

Lynn Community Health Center will use funds for their Keep Your Care Project an innovative, exciting, and urgently needed project with the ultimate goal of helping low income people in Lynn access and maintain their health care through insurance coverage, consumer education, and advocacy.

North Adams:

8. Ecu-Health Care $40,000

Ecu-Health Care will use funds to provide public health outreach, application assistance, and support accessing primary care providers. One-on-one training will educate clients on the individual mandate, minimum creditable coverage policies, and affordability regulations.

Springfield:

9. Caring Health Center $40,000

Caring Health Center's program will use funds to target refugees, immigrants, and other linguistic and cultural minority groups who face barriers to enrollment and health care navigation. The health center provides comprehensive primary medical care and dental services to residents in the medically underserved city of Springfield and its surrounding areas.

Turner Falls:

10. Community Health Center of Franklin County $40,000

Community Health Center of Franklin County will use funds to provide a comprehensive continuum of services including community outreach, enrollment and eligibility assistance, transportation assistance, Spanish interpretation, case management, and care coordination. The health center will target residents affected by significant social and geographic barriers to care, as well as new immigrants, migrant workers, and non-English speakers.

West Tisbury:

11. County of Dukes County $40,000

County of Dukes County will use funds to provide culturally and linguistically competent enrollment assistance, referrals, and retention services for public insurance and safety net programs, with a focus on the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking communities.


Worcester:

12. Family Health Center of Worcester $40,000

Family Health Center of Worcester will use funds for their Consumer Self-Sufficiency Program to improve access to health care and insurance coverage for low-income individuals and families, and increase patient self-sufficiency in navigating the health care system and obtaining the appropriate level of preventive and acute health care.

Worthington:

13. Hilltown Community Health Centers $40,000

Hilltown Community Health Centers will use funds to assist clients to access and maintain health insurance coverage, aiding them in learning how to stay enrolled in the public programs for which they are eligible. The program will also connect clients with a primary care physician and address prescription costs.

Strengthening the Voice for Access

Boston:

1. Boston Center for Independent Living $35,000

The Boston Center for Independent Living will use funds to support advocacy on behalf of those living with disabilities. BCIL is a frontline civil rights organization led by people with disabilities that advocates for supports and services that enhance the independence of people with disabilities.

2. Disability Policy Consortium $35,000

The Disability Policy Consortium (DPC) will use funds to unify the voice of disability groups as a leader in the Disability Advocates Advancing our Healthcare Rights (DAAHR) coalition, and in particular will focus the work of that coalition on the “dual eligibles” initiative, an effort to improve services for those dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. DPC will also address barriers to access such as underinsurance and advocate for the needs of those with disabilities who do not meet the federal definition of disabled.

3. Greater Boston Interfaith Organization $75,000

The Greater Boston Interfaith Organization will use funds to develop and implement a strategic advocacy agenda focused on health care cost containment. The goals of this effort will be to slow the growth of health care costs and to engage consumer participation in all levels of the cost and quality debate.


4. Health Care For All $75,000

Health Care For All (HCFA) will use funds to build a movement of empowered people and organizations to create a health care system that is responsive to the needs of all people, especially the most vulnerable. HCFA will continue its advocacy in pursuit of three key objectives: ensuring maximum enrollment in existing coverage programs, preserving and strengthening public program eligibility, and identifying and representing consumer needs within delivery system reforms.

5. Health Law Advocates $60,000

Health Law Advocates will use funds to provide legal representation to low-income residents experiencing difficulty accessing or paying for needed medical services.






6. Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers $60,000

The Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers (MACHW) will use funds to strengthen the professional identity, foster leadership, and promote the integration of community health workers (CHWs) into the healthcare, public health, and human services workforce. MACHW will continue to organize and empower CHWs to participate in policy and advocacy, conduct direct advocacy to ensure that CHWs are integrated into guidelines for medical homes and accountable care organizations, and will participate in advocacy coalitions and campaigns focused on health care access and payment reform.

7. Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition $75,000

The Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition will use funds to develop its organizing framework by engaging a statewide coalition to monitor the continued implementation of health reform and its effect on immigrant communities. The program will promote positive policy change for greater immigrant access to affordable health care and educate communities to advocate for access to health care coverage including defense of the Health Safety Net.


8. Massachusetts Law Reform Institute $75,000

The Massachusetts Law Reform Institute will use funds to advocate on six key issues: ensuring affordable and accessible health care for vulnerable populations, improving the administration of public coverage programs, ensuring Affordable Care Act implementation benefits low-income and vulnerable populations, protecting the rights and enhancing services for those dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. The program will ensure elders have access to services to prevent or delay institutionalization and that consumers have a voice in health care reform.

9. Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers $60,000

The Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers will use funds to serve as a key resource to its membership as cost containment and payment reform continue to reshape the health care environment. The League will conduct a multi-tiered advocacy strategy on a statewide level, including analyzing and disseminating policy information, engaging its members on key issues, and collaborating with other organizations and coalitions that share community health and primary health care goals.

10. Massachusetts Public Health Association $75,000

The Massachusetts Public Health Association (MPHA) will use funds to support collaborative efforts to integrate public health and prevention into health care payment reform discussions. MPHA is a statewide membership organization that undertakes advocacy, education, coalition-building and organized action to improve the public's health.


11. Massachusetts Senior Action Council $60,000

The Massachusetts Senior Action Council will use funds to enable the voice of seniors in pursuit of two key objectives. First, to defend current health coverage which is essential for vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities to obtain needed services. Second, for the development of a robust advocacy strategy for improving existing health care systems, restraining health care cost growth, and redressing current inequities caused by coverage gaps and variations in quality.