Connecting Kids to Coverage Outreach and Enrollment Cooperative Agreement - Southcentral Foundation (SCF) is an Alaska Native non-profit health care organization established in 1982 by Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI). SCF provides a wide range of medical and human services for 65,000 Alaska Natives and American Indians living in the Anchorage Service Unit. Alaska Natives and American Indians make up 13.4% of the population of Alaska. SCF only receives 33 percent of its operational funds from Indian Health Service compacts. Another 27 percent of its funding comes from federal, state and general monies, including philanthropy. The remaining 40 percent of SCF’s operational funds comes from third-party revenue, which includes Medicaid/ Medicare dollars and private insurance billing. To increase/maximize the generation of these funds, Family Health Resources (FHR) was created. FHR is responsible for assisting customers in securing third-party funding sources, including Medicaid, Denali Kid Care (DKC), and other types of health insurance.
SCF will continue its enrollment process based on program improvements over the years for its Connecting Kids to Coverage program. To continue such improvements and to assure health coverage for especially hard to reach children and families in rural Alaska, SCF is requesting $750,000 for the three year project. This will allow SCF to further increase the outreach and enrollment efforts and continually improve the system to enable SCF to increase enrollment from a projected annual enrollment of 851 (fiscal year 2016) to a projected annual enrollment of approximately 2,100 over three years.
The project will continue working with clinical staff in SCF primary care centers and Community Health Centers (CHCs), estimated number is 30 based on human resources data collected by SCF Data Mall. The projected total cost of care savings is unknown at this time but can be reflected in the difference in annual per capita spending between Indian Health Service for American Indians and Alaska Natives and Medicaid or Medicare. According to the GAO report to congress in December 2018, IHS per capita spending was $4,078, as compared to $8,109 for Medicaid, $10,692 for VHA, and $13,185 for Medicare. The difference between IHS per capita spending and Medicaid of $4,031, for instance, could be construed as a type of savings or the amount that could be used to support a health care system if the customer was enrolled in a health benefits program. That “savings” could then be used to assure more visits to primary care vs. the emergency room, overall quality healthcare and a sustainable system of care.
The funds will be used for personnel costs for a total of 3.5 full time equivalent staff and minimal supplies and promotional items.
