Since its enactment in 1997, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) has been the one of the most publicized new public policy program in decades, and the outreach programs launched throughout the country have been a central and highly visible component of this program. The Chicago Health Corps (CHC), an AmeriCorps program in its sixth year, has been committed to increasing access to care for all people, and has been working extensively with KidCare, the CHIP program in Illinois. Previous studies on outreach effectiveness, verified by our own experiences, have noted that successful outreach to “hard to reach” families is both community based and driven, and must be culturally and linguistically sensitive. Our AmeriCorps program is exceptional in that almost half of our Corps members are from the communities we serve, and are the traditionally “hard to reach.” They have demonstrated their commitment to their community and have built lasting relationships with fellow community members. In 1999, we were awarded a grant from the Illinois Department of Public Aid to conduct extensive outreach, and as a result we created a Corps-member driven KidCare Outreach Team that strategizes on effective outreach, plans concentrated and on-going outreach projects, and evaluates efforts. The presentation will provide a description of the Chicago Health Corps KidCare program, and present lessons learned from our Outreach team. A Corps member will give a personal account of how she contributed to the outreach strategy, and what her participation has meant to her development.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant will be able to: 1. Recognize barriers to effective CHIP outreach. 2. Discuss innovative solutions to outreach. 3. Apply these solutions in their own programs
Keywords: Health Insurance, Children
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Chicago Health Corps, an AmeriCorps program
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.