HIPAA News

Patient Advocate Foundation Assists Virginians Access Quality Healthcare

(Jan 16, 2008)-- 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.

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.

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