Grant Partners

The Boston Public Health Commission will use funds to train staff of city agencies and consumers on how to navigate the health care system and a newly launched web-centric resource database will be developed to help locate referral organizations.  Customized 'My Health Portfolios' will educate consumers on facts to consider when obtaining health care.

The Disability Policy Consortium (DPC) will unify the voice of disability groups as a leader in the Disability Advocates Advancing our Healthcare Rights (DAAHR) coalition, and focus the work of that coalition on the “dual eligibles” initiative, an effort to improve services for those dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. DPC will also address barriers to access such as underinsurance and advocate for the needs of those with disabilities who do not meet the federal definition of disabled.

Lynn Community Health Center will develop and evaluate its Integrated Care Project, an effort that integrates primary care and behavioral health care.  It will also develop a universal care plan supported by an electronic health record.  The project will create new models of care management and coordination for the health center’s highest-risk patients.  The health center believes that more appropriate services and increased treatment compliance will result in fewer emergency room visits and inpatient hospital care, reducing overall health care costs.  Over the three-year project, the health center will target 1,000 patients who have the highest rates of emergency room visits and inpatient hospital care.  To serve these patients, Lynn will develop an intensive care management team in which primary and behavioral health providers will work together. 

Community Action Committee of Cape Cod & Islands will ensure that eligible residents of Cape Cod and the Islands are enrolled in public health insurance programs. The program will focus on recently unemployed residents or those whose employers have eliminated health benefits or raised employee contributions beyond their ability to pay.

Health Law Advocates will use funds to provide legal representation to low-income residents experiencing difficulty accessing or paying for needed medical services.

Boston Medical Center (BMC) will integrate a depression-screning tool into the Re-Engineered Discharge (RED) protocol, an 11-step process for reducing the risk of patients being readmitted to the hospital.  Results have shown that patients who receive RED are 30% less likely to be readmitted within 30 days of discharge.  Because further research has shown that patients with symptoms of depression are 74% more likely than those without to be readmitted in this same 30-day window, RED-Plus, as the enhanced intervention will be known, will be piloted on BMC's inpatient services for Boston Medical Center HealthNet patients, whose primary care providers are located in the 15 community health centers affiliated with BMC. 

The Massachusetts Law Reform Institute will advocate on the following key issues: ensuring affordable and accessible health care for vulnerable populations, improving the administration of public coverage programs, ensuring Affordable Care Act implementation benefits low-income and vulnerable populations, protecting the rights and enhancing services for those dually eligible for Medicaid and Medicare. The program will ensure elders have access to services to prevent or delay institutionalization and that consumers have a voice in health care reform.

Steppingstone, Inc. will partner with Stanley Street Treatment and Resources (SSTAR) to create a new program called MyCare, an effort to promote a more pro-active approach to health care for those in Steppingstone’s residential recovery programs. The target population for MyCare is persons in early recovery from chronic substance abuse and mental health disorders.  Over 70% of this population has recent histories of homelessness and more than 70% have chronic conditions, in addition to their substance abuse or mental health disorders. The project will begin with residents of its Fall River women’s program in year one and will incorporate the Fall River men’s program in the second year, and its Stone Residence for chronically homeless individuals in the third year. The program projects to serve 465 clients over the three years with one-on-one assistance and intervention. 

The Massachusetts Senior Action Council will enable the voice of seniors in pursuit of two key objectives.  First, to defend current health coverage which is essential for vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities to obtain needed services.  Second, for the development of a robust advocacy strategy for improving existing health care systems, restraining health care cost growth, and redressing current inequities caused by coverage gaps and variations in quality.