Grant Partners

Lowell Community Health Center, which serves a community with a high rate of uninsurance, will strengthen services to engage and enroll clients in health insurance and educate staff and community-based agencies about the health care system to increase understanding and trust, especially among refugee and immigrant populations. It will increase efficiencies to improve patient access to health insurance benefits services and it will increase its capacity to formalize tracking systems for its patients to address churn. Lowell Community Health Center will increase timely, culturally and linguistically appropriate guidance to assist clients in making informed decisions and maintaining health insurance.

The Joint Committee for Children’s Health Care in Everett assists clients, many from immigrant, multilingual, and multicultural backgrounds, to understand health insurance coverage options and how to access services. It will coordinate six, large-scale enrollment events across different settings and provide focused outreach to specific populations, including children aging out of parents’ household coverage. It will convene two stakeholder meetings of practitioners and other participants to discuss strategies to eliminate churn and minimize misinformation. It will also attend community events and distribute flyers monthly throughout the service area at venues such as service agencies, ethnic small businesses, laundromats, libraries, parks and places of worship.

Brockton Neighborhood Health Center, which serves a community with one of the state’s highest number of uninsured residents, will partner with local organizations to expand its reach to specific populations, including immigrants, recently or chronically unemployed, residents recovering from substance use disorder, probationers and parolees. It will position its certified application counselor in the community five days a week and work with consumers post-enrollment to ensure that they maintain coverage and have access to care.

The Dimock Center, which serves a community with a high rate of uninsurance, will strengthen its capacity to provide health insurance outreach and enrollment services, ensuring that its clients gain knowledge about coverage options as well as how to access and navigate the health care system. The Dimock Center will focus on clients with substance use disorder, specifically those seeking to and who are currently accessing services at its inpatient detox and residential recovery homes. These clients are often disconnected from the health care system, including health insurance coverage, therefore the Dimock Center will enhance its services to ensure that clients interested or participating in these programs are connected with financial counselors to enroll in, maintain coverage. Through 2021, specific grant plans may be adjusted to meet the current health and safety guidelines to protect the wellbeing of clients, patients, and staff.

Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center will enhance partnerships with other community organizations in the region for outreach and enrollment services and it will increase visibility in the community where the most vulnerable clients are likely to congregate, including community centers, cultural events, and libraries. To better assist clients, the health center will implement a schedule to increase access to walk-in assistance. It will proactively provide clients with the tools they need to prevent lapses in coverage and will work with insurers to obtain lists of members who are up for renewal, supporting those patients in the re-determination process.