 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Lisa Baumann, MHA, Healthy Northeast Access Program, Community Access Program, University of Scranton, PO Box 670, Scranton, PA 18501, 570-941-4363, LBaumann@HealthyNEAccess.org, Peter C. Olden, PhD, Graduate Health Administration Program, University of Scranton, Jefferson Avenue, Scranton, PA 18510, Rick Wilk, MPH, MBA, Division of State and Community Assistance, HRSA, 233 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 200, Chicago, IL 60601, Steven J. Szydlowski, MBA, MHA, Healthy Northeast Pennsylvania Initiative, c/o Allied Services, 100 Abington Executive Park, Clarks Summit, PA 18411, David Rogoff, MHA, Hillsborough County, Director, Health and Social Services, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., 25th Floor, Tampa, FL 33602, and Constance Wisdo, MS, Royal Technology Group, University of Scranton, Linden Street, St.Thomas Communications Wing, 5th Floor, Scranton, PA 18510.
Sustainability is a major challenge in developing coordinated safety-net systems that improve access to care for uninsured populations. Quantified outcome measures of both health status and financial return on community investment (ROCI) can strengthen these systems' cases for continued funding and sustainability. Given rising healthcare costs and a strained economy, coordinated care systems for uninsured populations are vital, and they have reduced costs by $2000 per person on average in some communities. To support such systems, DHHS' Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) funded infrastructure development through its Community Access Programs (CAP). CAP goals encourage community coalitions to develop community-based integrated health delivery for the uninsured. Sites should invest to improve efficiency and financial stability of their programs, enhance access to care, and expand safety-net capacity. Also, coalitions should establish models that are sustainable after CAP funding ends. Through HRSA, methodologies have been created to measure outcomes of coordinated systems that expand access for the uninsured. ROCI outcomes enable investment benefits to be evaluated with health and financial measures, thus building the business case for private funding and sustainability. To further show ROCI and improve program sustainability, a CAP in Pennsylvania has applied ROCI methodology and added two enhancements: custom software to capture specific program outcomes, and, conversion of some health outcomes into dollar values. The methodology and enhancements applied by this program to a community access program for uninsured people have implications for other programs and for their enrollees' lifestyles, social determinants of health, and health.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Access to Health Care, Outcome Measures
Related Web page: www.HRSA.gov
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Department of Health and Human Services' Health Resources and Services Administration. Health Resources and Services Administration's Community Access Program. Healthy Northeast Access Program, University of Scranton
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: The Healthy Northeast Access Program receives the majority of its funding through HRSA(Community Access Program), additional funding is provided through the PA Department of Health. The Univ. of Scranton administers both of these grants. I am a paid emp