Patient Advocate Foundation Program Has Already Helped Hundreds of
Uninsured Virginians with Chronic, Debilitating and Life-Threatening
Illness Since its July 2007 Launch
NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Patient
Advocate Foundation (PAF) -- a national, non-profit organization based in
Virginia providing assistance to tens of thousands of patients every year
who face access to healthcare issues due to financial or insurance denials
- and the Commonwealth of Virginia announced today six-month results of the
Virginia Cares Uninsured Program (VCUP), a free patient assistance program
provided by PAF and the Commonwealth designed to assist uninsured Virginia
residents who have been diagnosed with a chronic, debilitating or
life-threatening illness and are experiencing difficulties accessing
appropriate healthcare.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Bureau of the
Census, approximately 47.6 million Americans do not have any form of health
insurance. The 2005 Census estimates that in Virginia alone, there are
952,000 uninsured adults and 156,000 uninsured children, translating to
approximately 12.8 percent of the state's population. Uninsured patients
such as these face a variety of serious medical debt and access to care
crises - such as being unable to access needed medical care and screenings,
fill prescribed medications or pay existing medical bills - that can
significantly harm their quality of care and health outcomes.
Since July 2007, the VCUP's healthcare professionals at Patient
Advocate Foundation have helped more than 780 uninsured Virginians who were
facing these types of issues by seeking to negotiate funding and/or
insurance coverage to access medical treatments; striving to negotiate free
or reduced medications, nutrition, housing, utilities and free or reduced
transportation and lodging for patients who must travel for treatment;
assisting patients with obtaining insurance with COBRA, Medicaid, Medicare,
Guarantee Issues Plans, HIPAA plans and FAMIS/FAMIS Select; and helping
patients with applying, expediting decisions and appealing Social Security
Disability Insurance (SSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Long Term
Disability (LTD) and/or Short Term Disability.
"We are pleased to have been able to help so many of our fellow
Virginians in only the first six months of the Virginia Cares Uninsured
Program by providing expert case management at no charge to help patients
gain access to healthcare services that meet pharmaceutical, surgical,
radiation, physician and social service needs," said Nancy Davenport-Ennis,
President and CEO of PAF. "Quality healthcare is a basic human need and a
shared social responsibility, and all Virginians should have access to a
full continuum of healthcare services, particularly when diagnosed with a
life-threatening illness."
VCUP highlighted six-month program successes include:
-- Providing critical information and assistance to more than 780
Virginians, 380 of whom were uninsured with serious medical conditions and
required case management assistance to create access to healthcare
-- Conducting 82 outreach visits to Virginia community clinics,
hospitals, Virginia Department of Social Services, and Virginia Medicaid
offices to review benefits of the VCUP program for their consumers
-- Developing and distributing program information to 138 hospitals and
social service offices throughout Virginia
-- Holding educational sessions with medical personnel and staff from
four research hospitals, nine health departments and 13 medical clinics
-- Launching the VCUP website, http://www.pafcares.org, whereby uninsured
patients can access additional information about the VCUP and PAF, download
brochures and contact program case managers
-- Providing quarter to half-page display ads in Virginia newspapers
informing citizens of the VCUP program
Under the construct of the VCUP, PAF case managers work closely with
patients to evaluate their individual needs, striving to facilitate access
to timely and appropriate care. In some cases this includes helping
patients apply to state or federal programs, while in others it requires
detailed investigation into local, regional and/or disease specific
resources and individual healthcare providers who accept and care for
indigent patients regardless of their ability to pay. The VCUP program
representative also negotiates for free medications, transportation to/from
medical services, and any additional underlying social service needs to
facilitate access to healthcare.
To be eligible for the VCUP, a patient must be a legal resident of the
United States currently residing in Virginia with a diagnosis of chronic,
life-threatening or debilitating illness and must be uninsured. Additional
PAF programs include Co-Pay Relief, National African American Outreach
Program, Colorectal CareLine, LIVESTRONG(TM) Partnership and the National
Hispanic Latino Outreach Program. For more information on the Virginia
Cares Uninsured Program, visit http://www.pafcares.org or call
1-800-532-5274.
Patient Advocate Foundation is a national non-profit organization that
seeks to safeguard patients through effective mediation assuring access to
care, maintenance of employment and preservation of their financial
stability.
SOURCE Patient Advocate Foundation
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Related links:
http://www.pafcares.org
CONTACT:
Jenn Lawson of the Patient Advocate
Foundation, +1-703-548-0019
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