Connecticut Health Foundation Funds Report Card of ACHT’S Implementation
of ACA Provisions to Advance Health Equity
HARTFORD, CT – The Connecticut Health Foundation’s (CT Health) board of directors recently awarded a one-year $75,000 grant to the Texas Health Institute (THI) to measure Access Health CT’s (AHCT) implementation of specific Affordable Care Act (ACA) provisions explicitly intended to improve the health of diverse populations. The resulting “Health Equity Report Card” will monitor AHCT’s progress in ensuring that all Connecticut residents have an equal opportunity to enroll and use health insurance coverage.
“The report card will offer a tool to document, assess progress and offer recommendations on reaching, engaging and enrolling the state’s diverse communities in AHCT, drawing on the wealth of experience and knowledge of stakeholders across the state,” said Dennis Andrulis, PHD, Senior Research Scientist at the Texas Health Institute and the project’s director.
“CT Health intends for this report card to help to ensure health equity is not lost in coverage expansion, and to provide specific measures for ongoing improvement,” says Patricia Baker, president & CEO of the CT Health. “If successful, it will assist Connecticut in measuring the structures, processes and impact of AHCT in addressing racial and ethnic health disparities.”
Connecticut joins this national initiative, “The Affordable Care Act and Racial and Ethnic Health Equity Series,” along with the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and Kaiser Permanente, which will monitor the implementation in several states of progress of over 60 equity and diversity related provisions in the ACA that apply to the marketplace, safety net, workforce, quality and prevention.
OTHER GRANTS AWARDED
Children’s Dental Health Project (Wash., DC) was awarded a one-year $25,000 grant to provide federal and state oral health policy support and expert guidance to oral health advocates in Connecticut.
Connecticut Oral Health Initiative (Hartford) was awarded a one-year $100,000 grant to increase access to quality care that affects the underserved by focusing on: oral health as an integral part of overall health, the gap for adults and children who require a stand-alone dental plan through AHCT, and improving the oral health systems that surround pregnant women.
United Connecticut Action for Neighborhoods, Inc. (Hartford) was awarded a one year $50,000 grant to provide general operating support to continue its work to engage Medicaid enrollees and uninsured consumers in advocacy that results in the Department of Social Services’ improved ability to meet the needs of its customers.
President’s Discretionary Grants
African Caribbean American Parents of Children with Disabilities, Inc. (AFCAMP) (Hartford) was awarded a $15,000 general operating support grant.
Center for Medicare Advocacy (Willimantic) was awarded $15,000 to support the development of a five-year strategic plan that focuses on health equity through the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities.
Connecticut Center for Patient Safety (Redding) was awarded a one-year $25,000 grant to develop an educational program to improve the development of consumer information to help residents effectively navigate the health care system.
Fairhaven Community Health Center (New Haven) was awarded a one-year $25,000 grant to support their transition of the Smiles 2 Go Dental Van, formerly a program of the Hospital of St. Raphael, over to Yale New Haven Hospital.
Foundation for Educational Advancement (Simsbury) was awarded a $2,325.00 grant to support scholarship and travel expenses for advocates to attend the 2014 National Environmental Health, Technologies, Lead and Healthy Homes Conference in Wash., DC.
Northwestern Connecticut Area Health Education Center (Waterbury) was awarded a $10,000 grant to complete implementation of the Youth Mental Health First Aid project to train 100 individuals in the northwest corner of Connecticut to identify mental health issues early and assist youth in accessing treatment.
URU, The Right to Be, Inc. (New Haven) was awarded a one-year $25,000 grant to develop a grassroots campaign to: educate marginalized members of urban communities, increase enrollment in AHCT health insurance, host six informational events, and develop and distribute materials that health care organizations can adapt to reach and educate their targeted populations.
About the Connecticut Health Foundation
The Connecticut Health Foundation (CT Health) is the state’s largest independent health philanthropy dedicated to improving lives by changing health systems. Since it was established in July 1999, the foundation has supported innovative grantmaking, public policy research, technical assistance and convening to achieve its mission – to improve the health of the people of Connecticut. Over the past 14 years, CT Health has awarded grants totaling $52,000,000 in 45 cities and towns throughout the state.
In 2013, CT Health announced a five-year strategic shift that makes expanding health equity its central focus. For CT Health, health equity means helping more people gain access to better care, especially people of color. Better care includes physical, mental, and oral health.
For more information about the foundation, please visit www.cthealth.org or contact Senior Communications Officer Maryland Grier at Maryland@cthealth.org or 860.724.1580, ext. 21.
About the Texas Health Institute
THI has been tracking and reporting out progress on the race, ethnicity and equity provisions of the Affordable Care Act and their implementation since 2010. THI has released related reports, presentations and publications on the rollout of state marketplaces across the US, workforce development, the safety net, public health and prevention and other priorities, with additional specific projects intended to assist states in improving access to health insurance and care.