Enhancing the Health Care Safety Net
Orange County encompasses an 800 square mile area and has a population of over 3.1 million. Approximately 12% of the adults and 8% of the children are uninsured. Orange County is the largest municipal area in the United States without a county hospital and has more Medicaid beneficiaries than in 16 states. For uninsured and underinsured families in the County, the "safety net" of health services – programs either designed or required to serve them – is a critical lifeline in times of need.
In 2004, the CEO of a major hospital stated "...we do not have a safety net in Orange County, rather we have a series of threads that must be woven together to form a safety net." In response, the Health Funders Partnership of Orange County formed the Safety Net Coalition. Over 40 organizations came together and continue to collaborate in the development of strategic interventions to create and sustain a comprehensive health care safety net for the most vulnerable members of our community.
At the initial convening, the Safety Net Coalition identified three areas of greatest need:
- Access to specialty care for the uninsured and under-insured
- Insurance for every child in the county
- Increase revenue to expand county health services
As a result, AccessOC and the Children's Health Initiative of Orange County were established and $51 million in federal funding was obtained to expand and enhance the Orange County Health Care Agency Medical Services Initiative. In July 2008, the Health Funders Partnership of Orange County, in association with the County of Orange Health Care Agency and the Coalition of Orange County Community Clinics, launched the Primary Care Initiative. The focus is to provide a strong and effective, financially stable primary care system that supports the health care needs of low income residents. Paul Van Dolah & Associates was contracted in July 2009 to implement the recommendations of the committee.
Every day more children have medical insurance. Every week more uninsured adults receive primary and preventive care. Every month more free surgeries are performed and more health care professionals work to expand access to specialty care. Every year the quality of life is improved for thousands of people. This is just the beginning.