The W.K. Kellogg ‘Community Voices Health Care for the Underserved’ Initiative has been underway since 1998. Thirteen local projects were fund in the national demonstration to improve access to quality health care and to secure the safety net for the underserved and uninsured. This initiative is focused upon informing policy to affect sustainable changes that ensure a more effective and efficient health care delivery system that services all communities. Building up from the community level, this initiative focuses on raising the voices of those who historically go unheard.
The presentation will review the efforts of the Community Voices grantees to address the lack of health insurance coverage and the lack of access to dental and mental health services. Given the diversity of the grantees, various strategies have been used at the local levels with varying levels of success. Lessons learned will be presented illustrating the elements and challenges to successful campaigns to improve access to care for the underserved.
See www.communityvoices.orgLearning Objectives: At the conclusion of the presentation, the participant will be able to: 1) Describe the framework for a national initiative that involves community collaboratives working to improve access to care; 2) Describe the key elements in successful campaigns to inform policy; 3) Identify barriers and challenges to improving access for underserved communities.
Keywords: Access to Health Care, Community Collaboration
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: provide policy technical assistance to this initiative