Prescriptions are purchased with funding provided by th

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HealthAccessA key to our communitys health
future

• Organized under the
• Shawnee County Medical Society Foundation in 2002

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Did you know?

• A 2006 report from the Kaiser Foundation says
  25.9 of low income, nonelderly Kansans are
  uninsured.
• 24,000-30,000 Shawnee Co. residents are
  uninsured.
• The uninsured are more likely to be hospitalized
  for avoidable health problems and less likely to
  receive preventative care.
• Most ER visits by uninsured could be avoided
  treated on an outpatient basis.

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February 2006 United Way Community Needs Survey

• 14 said at least one household member not
  covered by health insurance.
• 25 specified ER as place they go when sick or in
  need of advice about their health.
• 17 went without a prescription because they
  could not afford it.
• 12 said a household member needed healthcare in
  the last year and did not receive it.
• Primary reasons they did not get health care
• It costs too much. (75)
• Not covered by insurance. (59)

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One More Fact

• 56 of uninsured Americans cant afford
  private health insurance but arent eligible for
  public assistance programs according to an
  analysis of the 2005 Current Population Survey
  published on the Health Affairs Website 11/30/06.

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What is HealthAccess?

• A community partnership modeled after best
  practices in Buncombe Co., NC and Wichita, KS.
  The Health Access program was developed under the
  Shawnee County Medical Society Foundation in 2002
  to
• Improve access to health care for low income,
  uninsured residents of Topeka and Shawnee County
• Combine donated physician care, hospital
  services, and medication assistance
• Enhance work done by Marian Clinic and Shawnee
  County Health Agency
• Address language barriers

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HealthAccess Partners

• 320 Shawnee County physicians
• Stormont-Vail Regional Health Center
• St. Francis Health Center
• KS Dept of SRS
• Community Resources Council
• 26 Pharmacies

• Shawnee County Health Agency
• The Marian Clinic
• Prescription Network
• 2 local optical Labs
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas
• Kansas Medical Society
• PDP Volunteers

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HealthAccess Goals

• Provide an organized and efficient system that
  increases access to health care by
• Recruiting physicians to participate
• Assisting patients in finding a medical home
• Focusing on preventative rather than episodic
  care
• Educating patients to access health care
  appropriately

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HealthAccess Goals (Cont.)

• Encouraging a sense of dignity for patients
• Tracking the amount of charity care
• Providing public recognition to providers
• Increasing health outcomes
• Lowering the cost of health care using
  preventative care
• Promoting a healthy work force

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Who is Eligible?

• HealthAccess patients must live in Shawnee
  County, not have insurance, and not qualify for
  other medical benefit programs.
• Total family income must be 150 or less of
  federal poverty guidelines (30,000) per year for
  a family of four.

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HealthAccess Patient Age
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HealthAccess Patient Mix
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Patient Enrollment

• Patients are enrolled for a 6 months, with
  possible re-enrollment.
• Patients receive ID and Pharmacy cards.
• Prescriptions are purchased with funding provided
  by the Topeka City Council and the Shawnee County
  Commission.
• A co-pay of 7.50 per generic prescription is
  required.

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Prescription Drug Program

• Many pharmaceutical companies offer FREE or
  LOW-COST medications through their patient
  assistance programs.
• The HealthAccess Prescription Drug Program
  volunteers help patients apply to the patient
  assistance programs.
• Many programs will ship a 90-day supply of the
  needed medication directly to the doctors
  office.
• Part of a community wide effort including Cotton
  ONeil, Project Access, Marian Clinic, Shawnee
  County Health Agency, and Valeo Behavioral Health
  Care.

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Donated Care 2006

• Physician Care 551,078.67
• Marian Clinic/SCHA 369,419.04
• Hospital Care 3,738,746.29
• Pharm. Prescriptions 72,615.00
• Generic Prescriptions 187,741.03
• Total 4,919,600.03

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Donated Care March 4, 2002 December 31, 2006

• Number of individuals enrolled 5,197
  (Active1,648)
• Physician Care 2,972,706.04
• Marian Clinic/SCHA 1,159,099.80
• Hospital Care 9,302,867.39
• Generic Prescriptions 1,055,292.46
• Presc. Drug Program 757,925.80
• Total 15,247,891.49

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HealthAccess is

• An opportunity for physicians, hospitals, city
  and county government, and community agencies to
  provide care that is coordinated, efficient, and
  more effective than any single entity could
  provide alone.

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Funding Partners

• Topeka Community Foundation
• Shawnee County Commission
• The City of Topeka
• United Way of Greater Topeka
• Private donations
• Shawnee County Medical Society

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Challenges

• Number of uninsured patients in Shawnee County
  continues to rise
• Maintaining the involvement of all participating
  organizations and volunteer providers and the
  addition of new volunteers
• Maintaining city and county government funding
  for prescriptions
• Funding for programs and administrative
  operations

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Contact Information
Karla Hedquist
Gary Caruthers Program Director
Administrator khedquist_at_kmsonline.org
gcaruthers_at_kmsonline.org

623 SW 10th Avenue Topeka, KS 66612 (785-235-0996)
www.scmsha.org