LOS ANGELES ---------First 5 LA, a child advocacy organization funded through Proposition 10 tobacco tax revenue, has awarded an $11.25 million grant to L.A. Care Health Plan to assure that thousands of children age 5 and younger receive key health maintenance and other services.
With recent state cuts to Medi-Cal and uncertainty about how the massive California budget shortfall may further impact the quality of public health services, the nine-month grant will sustain health care services not required by state programs for more than 200,000 low-income Los Angeles County children ages 0-5.
Those services include a medical advice line staffed by nurses; community-based health education and preventive care services; and incentives for doctors to extend office hours, decrease patient wait time, and further improve the quality of health care for patients.
"In the wake of significant cuts in state-funded health care programs and the potential for even more reductions, First 5 LA Commissioners share L.A. Care's concerns for the need to provide quality health care for the county's most vulnerable population - young children," said Evelyn V. Martinez, First 5 LA's executive director. "L.A. Care brings important health benefits to children across the county. As a result, they are less likely to end up in the emergency room with untreated illness or health threats due to chronic conditions, such as asthma."
L.A. Care is the largest public health plan in the country, serving close to 800,000 members in L.A. County through Medi-Cal (Medicaid), the Healthy Families Program (State Children's Health Insurance Program), and the Healthy Kids program, which covers low-income children who do not qualify for Medi-Cal and Healthy Families coverage. Since 2003, First 5 LA has provided nearly $30 million in funding for L.A. Care's Healthy Kids enrollees ages 0-5.
The First 5 LA grant will help mitigate negative effects of budget cuts and years of stagnant rates in state programs, whose reimbursement rates to doctors are already some of the lowest in the nation, L.A. Care CEO Howard A. Kahn said. "L.A. Care could face a decrease of some $6.4 million per month," Kahn said. "Given such a daunting fiscal challenge, we are pleased that the First 5 LA grant will allow us to continue to go the extra mile for L.A. County's youngest and neediest children."
L.A. Care serves more than 220,000 children ages 0 to 5, and recent studies by the Urban Institute and the Center for Community Health Studies show that such coverage and access to care has resulted in statistically significant drops in avoidable hospitalizations and school absences.
Still, access to quality health care is one of the most urgent needs facing residents of Los Angeles County. "More than 1.4 million adults and 229,000 children in L.A. County lack health insurance," said Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, Los Angeles County's Director of Public Health and Health Officer and vice-chair of the First 5 LA Commission. "First 5 LA's grant to L.A. Care will help fill very important health care needs and help strengthen the county's health care safety net for young children."
First 5 LA's financial support is critical if we are to maintain good health in L.A. County and give children the best opportunity possible to be healthy and successful in life, said Neal Kaufman, MD, MPH, also a First 5 LA Commissioner. "We're hopeful this grant will encourage other organizations to show support for L.A. Care's diligent efforts to provide a range of health-related services, including family resource centers, asthma management programs and a 24-hour nurse advice line." About L.A. Care Health Plan
L.A. Care Health Plan is the nation’s largest public health plan, created to ensure access to quality health care for low-income families who live in Los Angeles County through a variety of programs, including Medi-Cal, Healthy Families, L.A. Care’s Healthy Kids, and L.A. Care’s Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan. L.A. Care has been awarded an Excellent Accreditation by the National Committee for Quality Assurance. Learn more by visiting the L.A. Care Website at www.lacare.org.
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