Denver Health workers often show up where you would least expect them to. Whether it is at school, at church, or at a community gathering, Denver Health workers are there, helping the uninsured enroll in publicly sponsored insurance programs, such as Medicaid and the Colorado Indigent Care Program. This community outreach effort is designed to increase the enrollment of eligible individuals into health programs. A culturally diverse steering committee provides input on the best ways to interact with targeted communities. Two bilingual enrollment specialists communicate with Latino families in Spanish.
Denver Health (DH) is Denver's safety net with the primary mission to provide health care to Denver residents regardless of their ability to pay. It provides the area's largest volume of medical services to: low-income populations, Medicaid recipients, persons eligible for Medicaid but not enrolled, persons eligible for the Colorado Indigent Care Program, children eligible for the Child Health Plan, and self-paying patients without health insurance.
Denver Health serves 160,000 individuals, about one in four Denver residents. The specific goals of Denver Health Community Voices are:
To improve the health of Denver's medically underserved through innovations in community outreach, enrollment in publicly-funded health insurance, clinical case management.
To change public policy at the state and federal level for health program funding streams, reimbursement for community outreach and case management, and to reduce barriers to enrollment in publicly-funded health insurance.
Community Outreach The Community Outreach program is designed to demonstrate that culturally sensitive community outreach to underserved populations improves the enrollment of eligible individuals into health plans and empowers communities to assume greater responsibility for health. Community Health Advisers offer information about health plans and services as well as provide health education and resource referral. Additionally, Community Health Advisers form partnerships in each community. To date, over 200 businesses, schools, churches, and community leaders have joined Denver Health as community partners to improve the health of their communities.
Facilitated Enrollment The purpose of the facilitated enrollment program is to increase enrollment of eligible individuals into publicly sponsored insurance programs such as Medicaid, the Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+), and the state funded Colorado Indigent Care Program. Denver Health redesigned the enrollment process to include centralized application assistance and enrollment support.
One aspect included the creation of enrollment specialists who help patients and families enroll. There are now more than 40 enrollment specialists, the majority of whom are bilingual.
Community Involvement Denver Health, with the support of the Fannie Mae Foundation, has been implementing an Employee Assisted Housing Program for the last 5 years. Eligible employees can borrow from their 401(a) or 457 plans, buy a home, and then pay themselves back. Through this community-building program, Denver Health acknowledges the important links between asset development, improvement of property status, and development of good health.
Denver Health also continues to expand its work with community-based organizations. These organizations include the Denver Metro Black Church Initiative, the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, and the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment.
Denver Health For more than 100 years, Denver Health has fulfilled its mission to provide the best possible health care for all Denver residents. The city hospital boasts some of the top clinical professionals in the country, family and school-based health centers, public health department, and regional poison center. Much of its success is attributable to its view that the health and well-being of its patients and community are the highest priorities.
For More Information Contact Elizabeth Whitley Denver Health Community Voices Project Director 777 Bannock Street MC7779 Denver, CO 80204 Phone: (303) 436-4071 Fax: (303) 436-4069 Email: lwhitley@dhha.org
Also Visit http://www.denverhealth.org