Join Eric Thompson, Senior Account Executive CBIZ and Guests Michael Taylor, CEO Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center and Deb Polun, Chief Strategy Officer, Community Health Center Association of CT for a deep dive into Community Health Centers in Connecticut... whom do they serve, what needs are being met, what resources are available and why they’re so very necessary to 1 in 8 CT residents.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:13):
Welcome, everyone, to our first podcast
from the Health Care and Life SciencesCouncil of the Greater New Haven Chamber.
My name is Eric Thompson.
I am the chair of the council,and today I am extremely excited
to bring to the audiencea topic that is so important.
And if we look at measurablyimproving the health and well-being
(00:36):
of our communitiesand a dive into our federally qualified
health centers,there are so many resources available
to folks here in Connecticut and abroadthat we're just not aware of.
And so today, we have the expertsin the room to talk about this.
So why don't I turn to
each of you to introduce yourselfand then let's dig right into it.
(00:59):
So maybe, Deb, you can go first. Sure.
Thank you so much.
My name is Deb Poland.
I'm the chief strategy officerof the Community Health Center Association
of Connecticut.
And you're right.
Hi, Michael.
Good to see you.
Taylor,I am the president and CEO of the Cornell
Scott Hill Health Center,based in New Haven, Connecticut.
And we're fortunate enough on our councilto have Doctor
(01:22):
Tech having been part of the councilfor a long time.
And so I thank you for taking both of youthe time to come here today.
So let's just get,you know, straight out in the,
you know, of the gates here and say, whatis a federally qualified health center?
You don't know.
Well, I do
a federally qualified health centeris the closest thing that you're going
(01:44):
to get, see anywhere to a group, practice primary care center.
Federally qualified health centerstypically offer
primary medical services,
dental services, and the Haverhill Health.
Their evolution in terms of each ofthose lines of business
(02:05):
and expansions of those services varyfrom one organization to another.
But basically, we're primarycare practices, but much broader.
Right, right.
And then when we look across Connecticut,
I'm going to come back to you on this,Michael.
But, Deb, how many of these centers dowe have here in Connecticut?
We have 17 federally qualified healthcenter organizations in Connecticut,
(02:26):
and each of them have many sites availablefor people to access services.
So, for example, Michael's organization,Cornell Scott Hill, based in New Haven.
But how many sites do you have?
Five. 35? 35.
For people to get care,
medical.
Dental. Behavioral health, vision.
We have a lot of especially care as well.
(02:48):
Right. So when you say specialtycare expand on that.
For that could mean ophthalmology.
That could mean dermatology.
That could mean what else do we offer.
Or the pitas.
It could be eye
ear in NT broad range of services.
(03:11):
So this is a really special thingthat people can go in
and they can get their primary medicalcare, dental and behavioral health,
usually all in the same building.
Sometimes specialty care,like Michael said.
And it's for all ages.
So if you're a parent and you have kidsand maybe you have
a parent yourself, that you'realso helping to manage the care.
(03:32):
All of you can receive care from the sameorganization in the same building.
And what's one of the other benefitsis that all of those services are
on the same electronic healthrecord platform.
So it makes it easier for usas an organization
to coordinate all the servicesthat are being provided for patients.
So you don't have to go from one placeto another
(03:55):
to have all of your care needs metyou providers and talking to each other.
Right.That's one of the biggest challenges.
Right.
That's the biggest challengewe have in our health care
delivery system is, you know,
my information is everywhere,and I'm spending a lot of time
trying to coordinate that or figure out,you know,
what prescriptions need to get refilledor what have you, I think.
So when I look at how many peopleare getting served here in Connecticut.
(04:17):
I don't know if we have a number.
I think I saw a number out thereof over close to a half a million people
in Connecticut use Federally qualifiedhealth centers and 52,000.
So you're right on. Right on.
I wasn't going to quote that,but I did look at your website
and you said I,I'm responsible for the website.
So thank you for that.
So one out of every eight and acrossthe country, there are about 32 million
(04:39):
people in America who use a federallyqualified health center for their care.
So then when we look at peoplethat are using Federally Qualified Health
center,you know, in my role as a benefit broker
consultant here in Connecticut,trying to create programs
that employers can offer to theiremployees, we are always struggling with
cost of care,deductibles, cost of insurance.
(05:03):
You know, we have within employerpopulations, we'll have Medicare,
you know, individuals,we'll have Medicaid folks
that are on Husky,and then we'll have people that have
in the same populationthat also have the commercial insurance.
You guys serve all populations.
Everyone. Everyone.
And so, you know, I've been involvedwith the Great Haven Chamber for years.
(05:24):
Wonderful.
One of my reasons for wanting to be inthat form is so that the employers,
local employers, would know that we'rethe ones who take care of their workforce.
We're the ones that enable them
to build their businesseson how they engage people.
Well, and that's ultimatelywhat led to this today, this podcast was
(05:44):
our council is very hands on, activeand wanting to improve access to care
by educating the population, both
within the chamber community and abroad.
And so let's talk a little bit aboutyou have Michael over 30 locations.
We do.
We have 35, 22 schoolbased health centers.
(06:06):
We have become quitea significant organization
now serving 60,000 patients per year.
Just coincidentally, last year we just gotfinished one of our federal reports.
And we now know that last yearwe rendered more than 400,000 visits.
Wow. Our 60,000 patients.
We have now been existence in two yearswill be 60 years old.
(06:31):
So we've been around for a while, right?
And we have grown quiteconsiderably over that 60 years such that
we now there are 750 staff membersthat the Scott Hillel Center.
We are as much a providerof behavioral health services
as we aremedical and medical specialty services.
We are a teaching health center.
(06:52):
As we operate,we manage Yale's Yale Haven hospitals,
teaching clinics in internal medicineand women's health services.
So it's become quitea significant organization.
So thank you for that.
So then when we look at across the state,all the great work
that Michael and his team are doing,what do the other,
(07:13):
you know, when you look at your roleas the association,
what are you working on with ournot only the FCS
here, federally qualified Healthcenters here in Connecticut, but abroad?
What is what's your marching orders?What do you have to do?
We bring the health centerstogether here in Connecticut.
Michael's on our board,
along with the other CEOs of the otherhealth centers in Connecticut,
(07:36):
and we bring them together for educationsessions, technical assistance.
Our association is really striving
to ensurethat the health centers in Connecticut
are financially stable and providingthe very best care that they can.
So another big part of thatis working on public policy and advocating
for what it takes for health centersto continue to provide their services
(07:59):
to the people who need them.
And that's on the state level,on the federal level, occasionally
on the local level, we're bringingthe voices forward of health
center leaders and their patientsto ensure that policymakers
are helping to meet their needs,whether that's through ensuring
that Medicaid rates are high enoughto support continuing to provide services
(08:20):
to Medicaid enrollees, or ensuring that
that other programs are in placethat will provide the wraparound services
and all of the support services thathealth centers provide to their patients.
And I have to say, kudos to kick for,because they've been really outstanding
in supporting the state's communityhealth centers for the past many years.
(08:46):
Yeah. That's wonderful.
Yeah, because when we look at again,there may be 17 organizations delivering,
you know, so many visits,you know, 452,000 patients.
But you also have to work together,just like when we look at,
you know, the names that many folks inConnecticut would recognize.
You know, Yale, you know, Yale,Hartford health care, UConn Med Center.
(09:08):
You guys are right there, too,because it's all about how do we deliver
care and work together regardless?
I mean, we are partnerships, right?
And, you know, HavenHospital is certainly one of our partners.
We have many becausewe can't be all things to all people,
and we try not to recreatewhat already exists.
(09:29):
We'd love to partner and do partnerwith many organizations
to make sure that care is offeredin the most comprehensive way,
in the most convenient way and accessibleway for the communities we serve.
So what happens?
You know, I'msomeone that you know right now.
We knowthe uninsured population has spiked.
(09:52):
And not only you know, it'sone thing to say
uninsured has spiked,but clarity and understanding what I have
for coverage,
you know, whether it be Medicaidand Medicare or commercial insurance,
when I come into a health center,let's say I don't have any insurance.
What happens?
Not a problem is the is the easy answer,because we are the recipient
(10:14):
of a federal grantthat enables us to subsidize
the cost of care for patientswho are underinsured and uninsured.
So someone who meets the criteriacould come in and see one of our providers
who are extraordinary, by the way,
for little as as little as $20 per visit.
Yeah.
So all of the federally qualifiedhealth centers are charged by federal law
(10:37):
to serve all people in their area.
So if you come in and you're uninsured, the health center
will see you as a patient
like Michael indicated, put you ona sliding fee scale based on your income,
and then they will refer youto one of their enrollment specialists
who are on site to seeif you might be eligible for either Husky
or a commercial plan through AccessHealth CT, and they can help
(10:59):
you get enrolled right therethat same day.
And that's a great point because a lot ofpeople come in and they are uninsured,
but they are eligiblebut unaware of their eligibility, right.
So we work with them to get them enrolled.
I have to just shout outthat your health center
has some very long timeenrollment specialists,
(11:19):
and who come inwith literally decades of experience
helping people get enrolled in our stateMedicaid program, which we call Husky.
And now in the last 11,12 years and access Health CT.
Well, and I think this is what I say,
you know, when we're meetingwith employees of companies.
You know,do not be ashamed or hesitate to ask any
(11:41):
and all questionsbecause this stuff is so complicated.
And to miss cues on, oh,I was supposed to go and do this, or
I was supposed to godo that relative to applying for Husky or,
you know, a disruption in coverageor what have you lean on people.
And that's without a doubtwhen I think of the federally qualified
health centers,that is at the foundation, I would add to.
(12:03):
But you're leaning on peoplewho really have expertise in these areas.
So, as Deb indicated,we we have staff members who've been doing
eligibility work and helping our customersfor years, 20 and 30 years.
These folksreally know what they're doing, right.
And a lot of the staff members at healthcenters are from the communities.
(12:24):
And so they literally speakthe language of their patients.
So if you come in Englishisn't your first language, or you have low
literacy or you have troubleusing a computer, don't feel comfortable.
They're going to help you get the servicesyou need and help you get enrolled
and figure out what other servicesyou might be eligible for as well.
Well, and I think when I look at herein Connecticut, and I'm sure it's the same
(12:46):
outside of Connecticut, but like Michael,if I look at, you know, who you are
and what you stand for, that's the tenorof the federally qualified health centers.
Like we have to help the person versuswe have to do so many visits.
We have to get so many patients seeing that's not it at all.
It's person,regardless of the circumstances,
(13:07):
and that they bring to us as we
talked, talked about earlier,you serve everyone,
people who are uninsured,people who are in Medicaid or Husky.
In Connecticut,people are commercially insured
Medicare patients, people in MedicareAdvantage programs.
We serve everyone well.
(13:28):
And again, working with employersand employees of companies,
I can tell you thatthose that I have educated
and my team has educatedon federally qualified,
there have been many timeswhere they come back
and say, I'mso thankful that you did that,
because it was such a great experiencewhere I could actually go there and get
stuff done, not do it in an urgencyand not feel like I couldn't afford it.
(13:50):
So you talked about sliding scalebased on income.
Can you just dive into thatfor the audience for a second? Sure.
So every federally qualifiedhealth center has a board of directors,
the board of directors,and this is in federal law.
More than half of the board of directorsmust be patients of the health center.
And so they truly are rootedin their communities
(14:10):
and governed by peoplewho are going to be using their services.
The board of directorseach year has to set a scale,
a sliding fee scale for customersto use who come in or uninsured
or underinsured and underinsured.
Could be you have a commercial planwith a $3,000 deductible,
and you're going to have to pay outof pocket for certain visits and so forth.
(14:33):
And that sliding fee scaleis then incorporated
on the front desk, people,or the very first people you see.
And they're going to help
make sure that you get accessto the services that you need
at a price that you can afford.
And if you can't afford it, they're notgoing to turn you away either. Right?
And they're not going to hit you with$180,000 bill that we that we hear about.
You know, I think what I alsowe were talking earlier before we started
(14:57):
recording, but last night 60 minutesdid an article on remote area medical,
which is Ahram USA
there in about 19 states, not Connecticut.
But in the endthey're creating the pop up, you know,
one day, two day, three dayclinics, primarily dental vision
(15:19):
and a little bit of medical,I want to say a little bit of medical.
It's because they the stat
I believe they use ScottPelley use was 95% are non-medical visits.
And and people will show up for days
in advance because there's a limit onhow many patients can be seen.
And they'll sit in their cars waiting for,
you know, dentures and I exams andand so on.
(15:42):
And Deb, we were talking about earlier the mission of mercy.
But, you know,
and I want you to talk about thatbut also getting back and we've said it
a few times, talk about why people don'tneed to wait to go to go get care,
because we're there all the time. Right?
We've been in place for 58 years nowand serving fourth generation families.
(16:02):
And you see everyone. Everyone.
Yeah, we have
we do have the annual mission of MercyDental Clinic here in Connecticut.
It's actually coming up
in a couple of weeks,I think April 17th and 18th in stores.
And this is a wonderful servicethat is provided
by volunteer dentistsand lots of volunteers every single year.
And people wait in line for many hours.
(16:24):
The weather in April is
it could be anything, right?
It's right.That's a good way to get it right.
It could be cold and rainy or hotand sunny while people
are waiting for these services.
And it is a good clinic,but we really want to make sure
that people knowyou don't have to wait in line like that
in order to get dental care.
(16:44):
You can call your local communityhealth center
and make an appointment for dental care.
You don't have to have dental insurance.
You don't have to havecomprehensive dental insurance.
And our health centers are going to seeyou at a time that's convenient for you,
where you don't have to wait in linewith a thousand other people
waiting to get your annual visit,or in the elements of unpredictable
(17:05):
New England springs,you can wait inside our health center.
Well, and I think what we were talkingabout earlier, too, is it, you know,
it is a constant missionto try to best communicate
and create awareness of what'savailable out there.
And so that's part of what this podcastis, is to say, here's the awareness.
We will see.
(17:25):
You know, I'll make surethat we put on the banners how to access,
you know, the various health centersand the care that's needed.
And then we didn't touch on it.
But Michael,I want to come back and talk about
what are you doing in the schools,because federally qualified health centers
live in some of the many of our schoolshere in Connecticut, we
(17:48):
have 22 I can't keep track of anymorebecause the number keeps increasing.
I think it's 22 or 23 schoolbased health centers where we offer
the same complement of servicesmedical, dental, behavioral health
services in 22 schools in metropolitanGreater New Haven.
And this is an amazing,amazing convenience for parents
(18:08):
and their children.
So if you think about anyonewho's a parent out there,
your kid has an appointmentin the middle of the school day.
If you are somebody who works,then you need to take time off from work.
Drive to pick up your kid,pull them out of school,
bring them to the doctor's office,bring them back to the doctor,
back to school,and then you go back to work.
So a 30 minute doctor's appointment
(18:29):
could take two hoursor more of your time leaving work.
And your child has missedmaybe math, science class, or who knows.
With the school based health centers
like Michael was mentioned,they can walk down the hall during either
recess or lunch or a free periodand get that same service right on site.
(18:49):
And because the parents have signed a formin the beginning of the year,
they are approving the servicesthat are being provided to their children
and then being kept in the loop.
So it's really an amazing convenienceand providing the same type of care,
the same quality of care that they wouldreceive on site at a doctor's office.
And if you happen to be if we happen to beyour child's primary care provider,
(19:13):
that those services that are provided inthe schools are entered
into the same recordas your child would see
when they come into one of our carecenters. Wonderful.
So it's seamless care. Yeah.
And this is not your school nurse'soffice.
You know, when you think about, oh,I have a headache or a fever or my belly
hurts, you'regoing to go to your school nurse's office.
This is your school physical.
(19:34):
Your weekly behavioral health visit.
Right. That's super convenient.
You're lots of some kidsthese days on medications.
Is the medication management as wellfor the kids while they're in school.
And so
now as we look to to wrap up our time heretoday, let's talk
about the importance of quality facilitiesand what and I'll turn to Michael,
(20:00):
the resources you need for your cliniciansto deliver this care.
Tell me about what what you haveto focus on as an organization
and also what your latest grandopening was.
Well, for the past 8 to 10 years,
we've been on a path of restoring,
(20:20):
expanding, improving the infrastructureof all of our care sites.
So I have to say, they're really beautiful
and I think competitive
with anythingthat exists anywhere in any market.
Patients are pleasantly surprised.
I one of the things that occurs to meis, as I say, this is
(20:42):
we are Joint Commission accredited,which is an accreditation body for health
care organizations.
And we had our joint commission survey,Sabrina's come and visit with us
last spring, and their comment was,I have never seen such a well-equipped
primary care organizationand every community should have a portal.
(21:04):
Scott Hill Health Center I'm biased,but I happen to agree.
I have seen manyhealth centers around our state
and they are just beautifuland it really shows
the investment in our communities.
So the Cornell Scott Hill HealthCenters are all beautiful facilities,
and then we have health centersthat are up in the northwest
(21:26):
corner of the state, the northeast cornerstate, all over every corner,
big city, every small city,and some of the suburbs as well.
And to invest in communitiesand to invest in people,
to really show peoplethat no matter who you are
and how you're paying for health care,you deserve to have the highest quality
place to receive care and the highestquality providers and resources.
(21:48):
So you asked about our most recent projectthat we completed,
because I think we've completed one a yearfor the past several years.
The most recent one that we opened uplast year was our recovery center,
which provides a 5052 beds of shelter
housing for people in some with substanceuse and mental health issues.
(22:12):
And that's now busier than it opened it.
Six months later.
It's full, right?
Right and underserved needthat we have here in Connecticut.
So in the end, you're doing somethingabout it instead of talking about it.
We certainly try. Yes.
Well, I,
I think as we come to a close here,I want to again, thank both of you
(22:33):
for giving the audience,you know, a really good deep dive quickly
into what's available for resourcesthe high quality care, high quality
facilities, ease of using the system
and through the statewide association,you and your team.
And obviously, Michael, you're part ofthat too, are working here in Connecticut
(22:55):
to continue to do our best to provide high quality
care to anyone that needs it.
Yeah.
Thank you for the opportunity
to to talk about it,because we do feel like unfortunately,
we're the best kept secret in Connecticutand we don't want to be the best
kept secret.
We want people to know
you probably have a health center inyour community and it's easy to find them.
(23:17):
You just go to our website.
And you could find a health center.
And then for Michael, for your website,
ww w Scott, we're very easy to reach.
203503 3000 there we go.
Well, wonderful as we now are in
(23:38):
just past a little bit pastEaster and we're coming into the spring.
By the time this is released,we'll have some leaves on the trees.
And I want to thank all of youand keep up the great work.
And thanks for coming in today.
And on behalf of our HealthCare and Life Sciences Council.
Critically importantfor us to get this message out.
So thank you.
Thank you so much.Remember your community health center.
Welcome, everyone, to our first podcast
from the Health Care and Life SciencesCouncil of the Greater New Haven Chamber.
My name is Eric Thompson.
I am the chair of the council,and today I am extremely excited
to bring to the audiencea topic that is so important.
And if we look at measurablyimproving the health and well-being
(00:36):
of our communitiesand a dive into our federally qualified
health centers,there are so many resources available
to folks here in Connecticut and abroadthat we're just not aware of.
And so today, we have the expertsin the room to talk about this.
So why don't I turn to
each of you to introduce yourselfand then let's dig right into it.
(00:59):
So maybe, Deb, you can go first. Sure.
Thank you so much.
My name is Deb Poland.
I'm the chief strategy officerof the Community Health Center Association
of Connecticut.
And you're right.
Hi, Michael.
Good to see you.
Taylor,I am the president and CEO of the Cornell
Scott Hill Health Center,based in New Haven, Connecticut.
And we're fortunate enough on our councilto have Doctor
(01:22):
Tech having been part of the councilfor a long time.
And so I thank you for taking both of youthe time to come here today.
So let's just get,you know, straight out in the,
you know, of the gates here and say, whatis a federally qualified health center?
You don't know.
Well, I do
a federally qualified health centeris the closest thing that you're going
(01:44):
to get, see anywhere to a group, practice primary care center.
Federally qualified health centerstypically offer
primary medical services,
dental services, and the Haverhill Health.
Their evolution in terms of each ofthose lines of business
(02:05):
and expansions of those services varyfrom one organization to another.
But basically, we're primarycare practices, but much broader.
Right, right.
And then when we look across Connecticut,
I'm going to come back to you on this,Michael.
But, Deb, how many of these centers dowe have here in Connecticut?
We have 17 federally qualified healthcenter organizations in Connecticut,
(02:26):
and each of them have many sites availablefor people to access services.
So, for example, Michael's organization,Cornell Scott Hill, based in New Haven.
But how many sites do you have?
Five. 35? 35.
For people to get care,
medical.
Dental. Behavioral health, vision.
We have a lot of especially care as well.
(02:48):
Right. So when you say specialtycare expand on that.
For that could mean ophthalmology.
That could mean dermatology.
That could mean what else do we offer.
Or the pitas.
It could be eye
ear in NT broad range of services.
(03:11):
So this is a really special thingthat people can go in
and they can get their primary medicalcare, dental and behavioral health,
usually all in the same building.
Sometimes specialty care,like Michael said.
And it's for all ages.
So if you're a parent and you have kidsand maybe you have
a parent yourself, that you'realso helping to manage the care.
(03:32):
All of you can receive care from the sameorganization in the same building.
And what's one of the other benefitsis that all of those services are
on the same electronic healthrecord platform.
So it makes it easier for usas an organization
to coordinate all the servicesthat are being provided for patients.
So you don't have to go from one placeto another
(03:55):
to have all of your care needs metyou providers and talking to each other.
Right.That's one of the biggest challenges.
Right.
That's the biggest challengewe have in our health care
delivery system is, you know,
my information is everywhere,and I'm spending a lot of time
trying to coordinate that or figure out,you know,
what prescriptions need to get refilledor what have you, I think.
So when I look at how many peopleare getting served here in Connecticut.
(04:17):
I don't know if we have a number.
I think I saw a number out thereof over close to a half a million people
in Connecticut use Federally qualifiedhealth centers and 52,000.
So you're right on. Right on.
I wasn't going to quote that,but I did look at your website
and you said I,I'm responsible for the website.
So thank you for that.
So one out of every eight and acrossthe country, there are about 32 million
(04:39):
people in America who use a federallyqualified health center for their care.
So then when we look at peoplethat are using Federally Qualified Health
center,you know, in my role as a benefit broker
consultant here in Connecticut,trying to create programs
that employers can offer to theiremployees, we are always struggling with
cost of care,deductibles, cost of insurance.
(05:03):
You know, we have within employerpopulations, we'll have Medicare,
you know, individuals,we'll have Medicaid folks
that are on Husky,and then we'll have people that have
in the same populationthat also have the commercial insurance.
You guys serve all populations.
Everyone. Everyone.
And so, you know, I've been involvedwith the Great Haven Chamber for years.
(05:24):
Wonderful.
One of my reasons for wanting to be inthat form is so that the employers,
local employers, would know that we'rethe ones who take care of their workforce.
We're the ones that enable them
to build their businesseson how they engage people.
Well, and that's ultimatelywhat led to this today, this podcast was
(05:44):
our council is very hands on, activeand wanting to improve access to care
by educating the population, both
within the chamber community and abroad.
And so let's talk a little bit aboutyou have Michael over 30 locations.
We do.
We have 35, 22 schoolbased health centers.
(06:06):
We have become quitea significant organization
now serving 60,000 patients per year.
Just coincidentally, last year we just gotfinished one of our federal reports.
And we now know that last yearwe rendered more than 400,000 visits.
Wow. Our 60,000 patients.
We have now been existence in two yearswill be 60 years old.
(06:31):
So we've been around for a while, right?
And we have grown quiteconsiderably over that 60 years such that
we now there are 750 staff membersthat the Scott Hillel Center.
We are as much a providerof behavioral health services
as we aremedical and medical specialty services.
We are a teaching health center.
(06:52):
As we operate,we manage Yale's Yale Haven hospitals,
teaching clinics in internal medicineand women's health services.
So it's become quitea significant organization.
So thank you for that.
So then when we look at across the state,all the great work
that Michael and his team are doing,what do the other,
(07:13):
you know, when you look at your roleas the association,
what are you working on with ournot only the FCS
here, federally qualified Healthcenters here in Connecticut, but abroad?
What is what's your marching orders?What do you have to do?
We bring the health centerstogether here in Connecticut.
Michael's on our board,
along with the other CEOs of the otherhealth centers in Connecticut,
(07:36):
and we bring them together for educationsessions, technical assistance.
Our association is really striving
to ensurethat the health centers in Connecticut
are financially stable and providingthe very best care that they can.
So another big part of thatis working on public policy and advocating
for what it takes for health centersto continue to provide their services
(07:59):
to the people who need them.
And that's on the state level,on the federal level, occasionally
on the local level, we're bringingthe voices forward of health
center leaders and their patientsto ensure that policymakers
are helping to meet their needs,whether that's through ensuring
that Medicaid rates are high enoughto support continuing to provide services
(08:20):
to Medicaid enrollees, or ensuring that
that other programs are in placethat will provide the wraparound services
and all of the support services thathealth centers provide to their patients.
And I have to say, kudos to kick for,because they've been really outstanding
in supporting the state's communityhealth centers for the past many years.
(08:46):
Yeah. That's wonderful.
Yeah, because when we look at again,there may be 17 organizations delivering,
you know, so many visits,you know, 452,000 patients.
But you also have to work together,just like when we look at,
you know, the names that many folks inConnecticut would recognize.
You know, Yale, you know, Yale,Hartford health care, UConn Med Center.
(09:08):
You guys are right there, too,because it's all about how do we deliver
care and work together regardless?
I mean, we are partnerships, right?
And, you know, HavenHospital is certainly one of our partners.
We have many becausewe can't be all things to all people,
and we try not to recreatewhat already exists.
(09:29):
We'd love to partner and do partnerwith many organizations
to make sure that care is offeredin the most comprehensive way,
in the most convenient way and accessibleway for the communities we serve.
So what happens?
You know, I'msomeone that you know right now.
We knowthe uninsured population has spiked.
(09:52):
And not only you know, it'sone thing to say
uninsured has spiked,but clarity and understanding what I have
for coverage,
you know, whether it be Medicaidand Medicare or commercial insurance,
when I come into a health center,let's say I don't have any insurance.
What happens?
Not a problem is the is the easy answer,because we are the recipient
(10:14):
of a federal grantthat enables us to subsidize
the cost of care for patientswho are underinsured and uninsured.
So someone who meets the criteriacould come in and see one of our providers
who are extraordinary, by the way,
for little as as little as $20 per visit.
Yeah.
So all of the federally qualifiedhealth centers are charged by federal law
(10:37):
to serve all people in their area.
So if you come in and you're uninsured, the health center
will see you as a patient
like Michael indicated, put you ona sliding fee scale based on your income,
and then they will refer youto one of their enrollment specialists
who are on site to seeif you might be eligible for either Husky
or a commercial plan through AccessHealth CT, and they can help
(10:59):
you get enrolled right therethat same day.
And that's a great point because a lot ofpeople come in and they are uninsured,
but they are eligiblebut unaware of their eligibility, right.
So we work with them to get them enrolled.
I have to just shout outthat your health center
has some very long timeenrollment specialists,
(11:19):
and who come inwith literally decades of experience
helping people get enrolled in our stateMedicaid program, which we call Husky.
And now in the last 11,12 years and access Health CT.
Well, and I think this is what I say,
you know, when we're meetingwith employees of companies.
You know,do not be ashamed or hesitate to ask any
(11:41):
and all questionsbecause this stuff is so complicated.
And to miss cues on, oh,I was supposed to go and do this, or
I was supposed to godo that relative to applying for Husky or,
you know, a disruption in coverageor what have you lean on people.
And that's without a doubtwhen I think of the federally qualified
health centers,that is at the foundation, I would add to.
(12:03):
But you're leaning on peoplewho really have expertise in these areas.
So, as Deb indicated,we we have staff members who've been doing
eligibility work and helping our customersfor years, 20 and 30 years.
These folksreally know what they're doing, right.
And a lot of the staff members at healthcenters are from the communities.
(12:24):
And so they literally speakthe language of their patients.
So if you come in Englishisn't your first language, or you have low
literacy or you have troubleusing a computer, don't feel comfortable.
They're going to help you get the servicesyou need and help you get enrolled
and figure out what other servicesyou might be eligible for as well.
Well, and I think when I look at herein Connecticut, and I'm sure it's the same
(12:46):
outside of Connecticut, but like Michael,if I look at, you know, who you are
and what you stand for, that's the tenorof the federally qualified health centers.
Like we have to help the person versuswe have to do so many visits.
We have to get so many patients seeing that's not it at all.
It's person,regardless of the circumstances,
(13:07):
and that they bring to us as we
talked, talked about earlier,you serve everyone,
people who are uninsured,people who are in Medicaid or Husky.
In Connecticut,people are commercially insured
Medicare patients, people in MedicareAdvantage programs.
We serve everyone well.
(13:28):
And again, working with employersand employees of companies,
I can tell you thatthose that I have educated
and my team has educatedon federally qualified,
there have been many timeswhere they come back
and say, I'mso thankful that you did that,
because it was such a great experiencewhere I could actually go there and get
stuff done, not do it in an urgencyand not feel like I couldn't afford it.
(13:50):
So you talked about sliding scalebased on income.
Can you just dive into thatfor the audience for a second? Sure.
So every federally qualifiedhealth center has a board of directors,
the board of directors,and this is in federal law.
More than half of the board of directorsmust be patients of the health center.
And so they truly are rootedin their communities
(14:10):
and governed by peoplewho are going to be using their services.
The board of directorseach year has to set a scale,
a sliding fee scale for customersto use who come in or uninsured
or underinsured and underinsured.
Could be you have a commercial planwith a $3,000 deductible,
and you're going to have to pay outof pocket for certain visits and so forth.
(14:33):
And that sliding fee scaleis then incorporated
on the front desk, people,or the very first people you see.
And they're going to help
make sure that you get accessto the services that you need
at a price that you can afford.
And if you can't afford it, they're notgoing to turn you away either. Right?
And they're not going to hit you with$180,000 bill that we that we hear about.
You know, I think what I alsowe were talking earlier before we started
(14:57):
recording, but last night 60 minutesdid an article on remote area medical,
which is Ahram USA
there in about 19 states, not Connecticut.
But in the endthey're creating the pop up, you know,
one day, two day, three dayclinics, primarily dental vision
(15:19):
and a little bit of medical,I want to say a little bit of medical.
It's because they the stat
I believe they use ScottPelley use was 95% are non-medical visits.
And and people will show up for days
in advance because there's a limit onhow many patients can be seen.
And they'll sit in their cars waiting for,
you know, dentures and I exams andand so on.
(15:42):
And Deb, we were talking about earlier the mission of mercy.
But, you know,
and I want you to talk about thatbut also getting back and we've said it
a few times, talk about why people don'tneed to wait to go to go get care,
because we're there all the time. Right?
We've been in place for 58 years nowand serving fourth generation families.
(16:02):
And you see everyone. Everyone.
Yeah, we have
we do have the annual mission of MercyDental Clinic here in Connecticut.
It's actually coming up
in a couple of weeks,I think April 17th and 18th in stores.
And this is a wonderful servicethat is provided
by volunteer dentistsand lots of volunteers every single year.
And people wait in line for many hours.
(16:24):
The weather in April is
it could be anything, right?
It's right.That's a good way to get it right.
It could be cold and rainy or hotand sunny while people
are waiting for these services.
And it is a good clinic,but we really want to make sure
that people knowyou don't have to wait in line like that
in order to get dental care.
(16:44):
You can call your local communityhealth center
and make an appointment for dental care.
You don't have to have dental insurance.
You don't have to havecomprehensive dental insurance.
And our health centers are going to seeyou at a time that's convenient for you,
where you don't have to wait in linewith a thousand other people
waiting to get your annual visit,or in the elements of unpredictable
(17:05):
New England springs,you can wait inside our health center.
Well, and I think what we were talkingabout earlier, too, is it, you know,
it is a constant missionto try to best communicate
and create awareness of what'savailable out there.
And so that's part of what this podcastis, is to say, here's the awareness.
We will see.
(17:25):
You know, I'll make surethat we put on the banners how to access,
you know, the various health centersand the care that's needed.
And then we didn't touch on it.
But Michael,I want to come back and talk about
what are you doing in the schools,because federally qualified health centers
live in some of the many of our schoolshere in Connecticut, we
(17:48):
have 22 I can't keep track of anymorebecause the number keeps increasing.
I think it's 22 or 23 schoolbased health centers where we offer
the same complement of servicesmedical, dental, behavioral health
services in 22 schools in metropolitanGreater New Haven.
And this is an amazing,amazing convenience for parents
(18:08):
and their children.
So if you think about anyonewho's a parent out there,
your kid has an appointmentin the middle of the school day.
If you are somebody who works,then you need to take time off from work.
Drive to pick up your kid,pull them out of school,
bring them to the doctor's office,bring them back to the doctor,
back to school,and then you go back to work.
So a 30 minute doctor's appointment
(18:29):
could take two hoursor more of your time leaving work.
And your child has missedmaybe math, science class, or who knows.
With the school based health centers
like Michael was mentioned,they can walk down the hall during either
recess or lunch or a free periodand get that same service right on site.
(18:49):
And because the parents have signed a formin the beginning of the year,
they are approving the servicesthat are being provided to their children
and then being kept in the loop.
So it's really an amazing convenienceand providing the same type of care,
the same quality of care that they wouldreceive on site at a doctor's office.
And if you happen to be if we happen to beyour child's primary care provider,
(19:13):
that those services that are provided inthe schools are entered
into the same recordas your child would see
when they come into one of our carecenters. Wonderful.
So it's seamless care. Yeah.
And this is not your school nurse'soffice.
You know, when you think about, oh,I have a headache or a fever or my belly
hurts, you'regoing to go to your school nurse's office.
This is your school physical.
(19:34):
Your weekly behavioral health visit.
Right. That's super convenient.
You're lots of some kidsthese days on medications.
Is the medication management as wellfor the kids while they're in school.
And so
now as we look to to wrap up our time heretoday, let's talk
about the importance of quality facilitiesand what and I'll turn to Michael,
(20:00):
the resources you need for your cliniciansto deliver this care.
Tell me about what what you haveto focus on as an organization
and also what your latest grandopening was.
Well, for the past 8 to 10 years,
we've been on a path of restoring,
(20:20):
expanding, improving the infrastructureof all of our care sites.
So I have to say, they're really beautiful
and I think competitive
with anythingthat exists anywhere in any market.
Patients are pleasantly surprised.
I one of the things that occurs to meis, as I say, this is
(20:42):
we are Joint Commission accredited,which is an accreditation body for health
care organizations.
And we had our joint commission survey,Sabrina's come and visit with us
last spring, and their comment was,I have never seen such a well-equipped
primary care organizationand every community should have a portal.
(21:04):
Scott Hill Health Center I'm biased,but I happen to agree.
I have seen manyhealth centers around our state
and they are just beautifuland it really shows
the investment in our communities.
So the Cornell Scott Hill HealthCenters are all beautiful facilities,
and then we have health centersthat are up in the northwest
(21:26):
corner of the state, the northeast cornerstate, all over every corner,
big city, every small city,and some of the suburbs as well.
And to invest in communitiesand to invest in people,
to really show peoplethat no matter who you are
and how you're paying for health care,you deserve to have the highest quality
place to receive care and the highestquality providers and resources.
(21:48):
So you asked about our most recent projectthat we completed,
because I think we've completed one a yearfor the past several years.
The most recent one that we opened uplast year was our recovery center,
which provides a 5052 beds of shelter
housing for people in some with substanceuse and mental health issues.
(22:12):
And that's now busier than it opened it.
Six months later.
It's full, right?
Right and underserved needthat we have here in Connecticut.
So in the end, you're doing somethingabout it instead of talking about it.
We certainly try. Yes.
Well, I,
I think as we come to a close here,I want to again, thank both of you
(22:33):
for giving the audience,you know, a really good deep dive quickly
into what's available for resourcesthe high quality care, high quality
facilities, ease of using the system
and through the statewide association,you and your team.
And obviously, Michael, you're part ofthat too, are working here in Connecticut
(22:55):
to continue to do our best to provide high quality
care to anyone that needs it.
Yeah.
Thank you for the opportunity
to to talk about it,because we do feel like unfortunately,
we're the best kept secret in Connecticutand we don't want to be the best
kept secret.
We want people to know
you probably have a health center inyour community and it's easy to find them.
(23:17):
You just go to our website.
And you could find a health center.
And then for Michael, for your website,
ww w Scott, we're very easy to reach.
203503 3000 there we go.
Well, wonderful as we now are in
(23:38):
just past a little bit pastEaster and we're coming into the spring.
By the time this is released,we'll have some leaves on the trees.
And I want to thank all of youand keep up the great work.
And thanks for coming in today.
And on behalf of our HealthCare and Life Sciences Council.
Critically importantfor us to get this message out.
So thank you.
Thank you so much.Remember your community health center.
Popular Podcasts
Hey Jonas!
Hey Jonas! The official Jonas Brothers podcast. Hosted by Kevin, Joe, and Nick Jonas. It’s the Jonas Brothers you know... musicians, actors, and well, yes, brothers. Now, they’re sharing another side of themselves in the playful, intimate, and irreverent way only they can. Spend time with the Jonas Brothers here and stay a little bit longer for deep conversations like never before.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.