Grant Partners

Cambridge Economic Opportunity Committee will leverage partnerships with local community organizations; staff tables at cultural festivals, community fairs, faith-based organizations, and housing developments; disseminate flyers, door hangers, and utilize social media; provide education on the payment system through the Health Connector; provide post-enrollment assistance by educating about choosing a plan, making appointments, how to read medical bills, and questioning charges; and offer financial coaching in light of addressing premium payments. 

The Health Starts at Home Initiative supports four partnerships that bring together housing and health care organizations to support work that demonstrates the positive effects of stable, affordable housing to children's health outcomes, identify promising new and existing models for collaboration that can be brought to scale, decrease health care costs, and decrease costs related to homelessness.  Families eligible for participation have children under the age of 12, and are experiencing housing instability.  The evaluation partners for Health Starts at Home, Health Resources in Action and the Urban Institute, are conducting both outcome and process evaluations to measure whether and how improved housing stability affects the health of children, as well as to document successes and challenges, and develop best practices for creating these types of health care and housing partnerships. 

Disability Policy Consortium (DPC) will connect disability advocacy communities across the state and amplify the voices of these groups in conversations with state and federal policymakers. In so doing, DPC seeks to re-frame disability as a social rather than medical condition and to shift the focus within disability-related health care from payment to ethics. DPC will serve as a hub for cross-disability advocacy through community-based participatory action research, their co-leadership of DAAHR, and an expanded social media presence.

Lowell Community Health Center will institute a “triage” system to improve efficiencies in how patients are provided with enrollment assistance; extend enrollment hours at the health center; provide educational workshops for clinic and agency staff; develop a reminder checklist on the importance of reviewing correspondence from state offices and completing the re-determination form to avoid gaps in coverage; establish a tracking system that enables staff to reach clients with timeline reminders about renewal dates and post-enrollment issues; develop a comprehensive, multilingual patient education flyer with key insurance information; participate in local community health events to promote insurance counseling and enrollment; create a multilingual brochure listing available health insurance options; and offer quarterly onsite educational sessions for providers, front-line staff, and community agencies on health insurance topics.

The Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers (the League) will serve as a source of accurate and timely information related to health care coverage issues. The League will conduct policy analyses regarding state and federal issues and disseminates their learnings to policymakers, state agencies, member organizations, and other advocacy groups. Additional priorities will include increasing the League’s capacity for grassroots advocacy work and improving health literacy among patients at community health centers.

Health Law Advocates (HLA) will focus on improving health care access for vulnerable populations by providing direct legal services and advocating to state policymakers. Their direct legal service work will inform community outreach efforts, education programs, policy analyses, and legislative proposals. In their advocacy work, HLA will pay particular attention to children with disabilities, immigrants, and transgender individuals, and to issues related to behavioral health care access. Additionally, they will defend MassHealth members against federal Medicaid changes and ensure access to services for ACO-enrolled MassHealth members.

Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) will work to defend and expand funding and access to health coverage for immigrant and refugee populations in Massachusetts. In addition to advocacy regarding state-level policies, MIRA will work with national partners to expand health access to all immigrants. To this end, MIRA aims to initiate a long-term campaign in partnership with the National Immigration Law Center. They will also work with additional coalition partners to end restrictions to coverage for DACA grantees.

Massachusetts Association for Community Health Workers (MACHW) will focus on professionalizing the community health worker (CHW) workforce by advocating for statewide standardization of practices, the development of a certification process, and the promulgation of a code of ethics. Additionally, MACHW will work to increase CHW participation in medical decision-making and encourage delivery organizations to raise CHWs’ wages. They will also develop metrics capturing the impact of CHWs on social determinants of health, for consideration by MassHealth.

Boston Public Health Commission will maintain referral systems with community partners; host enrollment sessions throughout the city with a focus on the East Boston and Dorchester communities; leverage social media and local cable access; scale up flyering in census tracts with the highest rates of uninsured, with an emphasis on local businesses and community organization; and develop a multilingual plain language form that outlines when and how a consumer needs to update the state with pertinent information to maintain coverage.                                                                                          

The Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery (MOAR) will work to reduce stigma against addiction and to increase behavioral health care access and integration. Their efforts will center on increasing access to timely treatment to reduce overdose risk, as well as access to long-term treatment; advocating on behalf of populations disproportionately affected by addiction; and integrating peer support services into mainstream care. MOAR will conduct community organizing and outreach, participate in coalitions, and expand peer-oriented educational programs.

Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts (PHIWM) provides research and assessment, coalition-building and facilitation, and program and health policy development, with the goal of strengthening social needs, housing and health equity, specifically for low-income neighborhoods and communities of color. PHIWM will work with the region’s social and behavioral health service sectors to understand their needs and implement capacity-building strategies to respond to anticipated Accountable Care Organization patient referrals and clinical linkage programs.  Social service, housing, and behavioral health leaders seek PHIWM’s support in understanding how they can create partnerships that will enable social determinants of health to be addressed in health care settings.  

Ecu-Health Care will conduct outreach in partnership with local community organizations and institutions; provide direct-to-consumer outreach via phone or mailings to Berkshire Medical Center uninsured patients as identified through an automated referral system; partner with other area health and human service organizations to establish an online referral system; review with clients the contents of a member packet including information on what changes to an account need to be reported, staying healthy with your new insurance, eligibility and benefits, how to make a payment, and advanced premium tax credits; and expand digital media, billboards, public broadcast, and radio advertising.

Edward M. Kennedy will expand assistance on weekend hours; assist in educating about 13,500 MassHealth patients who will be impacted by changes related to the 1115 waiver and transition to the Accountable Care Organization model; verify the insurance status of current patients days in advance of upcoming appointments; work with insurers to identify members who are up for renewal and provide assistance; formalize an outreach and enrollment network to identify at-risk individuals and refer them to the Outreach/Enrollment team; and partner with community centers and places of worship. 

Health Care For All (HCFA) will work to protect and expand affordable, accessible health care within Massachusetts by advocating for the continuation and improvement of state and federal health and safety net policies. As a leader of the Oral Health Advocacy Task Force and the Affordable Care Today (ACT!!) Coalition, HCFA will educate policymakers about health care access issues and will engage in community organizing, coalition-building initiatives, and media outreach. Additionally, they will seek to identify under-resourced but effective mental health programs that may benefit from expansion.

Citizens' Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA) is the leading statewide housing policy and research organization in Massachusetts, and manages the On Solid Ground (OSG) Coalition, which includes organizations in housing, health, education, employment, legal services, and faith-based communities advocating for increased housing and economic stability for families, thereby improving housing, education, income and health outcomes.  CHAPA will conduct outreach and education to affect policy and systemic change at the intersection of health and housing.