The Health Care District of Palm Beach County is launching a new pilot program that will provide health care services for Palm Beach County residents who are currently not served by other health coverage programs. According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau report, approximately 265,000 or about 28% of Palm Beach County residents under the age of 64 lack medical insurance. Many of the recently uninsured cannot afford their COBRA payments to continue their coverage, yet do not qualify for other health coverage programs in order to receive needed medical services.
“Many people once they are uninsured do not necessarily become eligible for health coverage until they spend down a significant amount of their assets,” said Ronald J. Wiewora, M.D., MPH, Health Care District Chief Executive Officer/Chief Medical Officer. “This stopgap program for the uninsured will allow that person who has high blood pressure, for example, to continue to receive medication while they are going through the eligibility process. This will be a nice addition to the programs that the Health Care District already offers the community.”
The Health Care District Board of Commissioners approved plans for the pilot program at its December 14th meeting. Through a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) process, the Health Care District selected three qualified vendors who will provide medical services within the vendors’ respective locations. The three responses were from Florida Community Health Centers’ Pahokee Center, FoundCare Health Center and Genesis Community Health, Inc. The cost of the new initiative will be approximately $1 million, which will come from Health Care District reserves, and will allow for 16,666 uninsured visits at a cost of $60 per medical visit. The program will begin in fiscal year 2011-2012 and will be evaluated after six months to determine its progress.
