Grant Partners

LCHC has developed and implemented a fully integrated primary care and behavioral health program with co-location of services, co-management of patients by the medical and behavioral health providers through a shared care model, and utilization of shared electronic medical records through a newly-implemented Epic system.  The Foundation has supported the development, growth and improvement of this very strong behavioral health integration program, with continued funding for the health center’s response to the substance abuse epidemic in Lynn.  Building upon the learning and successes of its foundational behavioral health integration model, LCHC has developed an integrated primary care/mental health/addictions team of professionals who specialize in addictions and mental health disorders.  The team also utilizes medication to treat addictions, including Suboxone, with plans to add Vivitrol.  LCHC will expand this multi-disciplinary team by adding a psychiatrist, therapists, primary care providers, and nursing staff to serve approximately 800 patients.

To enhance an online platform and to purchase a tablet.

Citizens' Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA) is the leading statewide housing policy and research organization in Massachusetts, whose mission is to encourage the production and preservation of housing that is affordable to low-income families and individuals, and to foster diverse and sustainable communities through planning and community development.  CHAPA, in partnership with the Center for Social Policy (CSP) at the University of Massachusetts Boston, will conduct gap analysis research that will initiate the identification of programmatic and administrative barriers faced by vulnerable residents of the state when they try to use these resources.  While prioritizing health care and housing programs, and also focusing on child care and workforce training and development, CHAPA and CSP will identify the gaps and "disconnects" among existing programs, and identify ways to increase housing, health, and economic outcomes for low-income individuals and families.  Recommendations will be made about administrative, legislative, or regulatory changes that can be made to these eligibility systems, so as to benefit low-income families and individuals who often have to choose between necessities like housing, food, heat, or health care in order to make ends meet. 

To support technology enhancements and create brochures in Haitian Creole and Spanish.

To hire a consultant to work on developing a strategic plain and sustainability framework.

Cambridge Economic Opportunity Committee (CEOC) will plan outreach and enrollment activities at community locations. It will use an extensive follow-up system to address churn, ensuring that individuals have obtained the benefit they applied for and that all documents have been submitted.  It will conduct financial education and coaching to help ensure individuals can maintain their payments and minimize the risk of churn, and conduct educational coaching on health insurance literacy.

Project Directors: Laura Skopec, MS, Principal Investigator and Sharon Long, PhD, Co-Investigator“Community Matters: Understanding the Link Between Community Characteristics and High Uninsurance” is a one year project that will analyze the relationship between community socioeconomic, health system, and environmental conditions and the uninsured rate at the county and sub-county level. In addition, the researchers will assess how the characteristics of high uninsurance communities vary for particular subgroups (such as by age, gender, race and/or ethnicity). Through their work, which will rely on uninsured rates in Massachusetts based on the American Community Survey (ACS) files for 2010-2014 and Census Bureau data that will serve as proxies for community level socioeconomic, health system, and environmental conditions, the team will provide insight into the community characteristics associated with high uninsurance rates. The research team proposes to look at “outlier” communities – those that would be expected to have high levels of uninsurance based on their socioeconomic, health system and environmental conditions but do not, as well as those communities that would be expected to have low levels of uninsurance but do not.

Lynn Community Health Center (LCHC) will conduct outreach and partner with MassHealth and the Connector to host enrollment events. They will provide individualized education about the importance of maintaining coverage. Lynn will conduct post-enrollment follow-up to ensure access to primary care services and distribute guides to educate individuals on topics like eligibility and program requirements, assistance with citizenship or residence documentation, medical bills, referrals, and redetermination applications.

Funding for four staff members to attend the National Health Care for the Homeless conference in Washington D.C.

Brockton Neighborhood Health Center (BNHC) will provide outreach and enrollment assistance as well as assist clients with obtaining email accounts and accessing online applications through group sessions utilizing a bank of computers at partner organizations. BNHC will also provide Community Leader Forums that educate on health insurance literacy to local leaders of churches and cultural organizations.

Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy (MIRA) Coalition’s Health Access Campaign advocates for health care coverage for all immigrants. MIRA supports bills to lift caps for the Children’s Medical Security Plan, reduce out-of-pocket costs, and reinsert affordability protections for the lowest-income residents ineligible for MassHealth. MIRA will also convene a Task Force on Immigrant Healthcare Professionals to examine barriers to relicensing faced by thousands of foreign-trained health care professionals.

To produce marketing materials for a behavioral health outpatient clinic.

Hilltown Community Health Centers (HCHC) will work with small businesses, Councils on Aging, schools, employers, medical providers, and community organizations to conduct outreach, advertise in newsletters, print, and social media. They will work with the Connector to identify and target outreach to consumers who need to renew their coverage and partner with sheriff’s departments, courts and probation offices to reach recently incarcerated and court-involved individuals who experience higher rates of churn. To address health insurance literacy, they will develop consumer-friendly education tools and collateral. 

Community Action of the Franklin, Hampshire, and North Quabbin Regions will conduct outreach through four community coalitions, food pantries, and career centers.  They will screen all callers for health insurance needs and send reminders about member responsibilities to submit documentation and update information.  At enrollment meetings, Community Action will provide materials to help members stay organized and follow-up to see if they have a PCP, can access their Connector account, and have responded to any mailings. 

The Massachusetts Senior Action Council (MSAC) will address key public policy and community issues affecting the health and well-being for the 65 and over population, empowering its members to use their own voices to address key public policy and community issues. Advocacy will focus on the growing disparity in out-of-pocket costs and affordability. MSAC will coordinate the “Bridge the Gap” campaign, which focuses on health care affordability for seniors.