October 2023 Grants Awarded
EQUITABLE CARE AND COVERAGE GRANTS
A grant of $50,000 to African Community Services (ACS) will support funding a full time MNsure outreach navigator. The outreach navigator will conduct outreach within mosques, community centers, Somali malls and other activity hubs where there is a significant Somali population. ACS navigators will organize events and develop communications to educate the Somali community about MNsure, and engage leaders including Imams, elected officials, organizational directors and medical professionals to promote MNsure enrollment. The ACS outreach navigator will be supported by ACS program staff, who will screen all walk-ins and ACS program enrollees for health insurance enrollment needs and ensure they receive necessary assistance and support.
A grant of $40,000 to African Community Senior Services (ACSS) will support ACSS in increasing staff time of four experienced MNsure outreach navigators who speak East African languages (Somali and Arabic). Additionally, ACSS will conduct outreach activities to engage and build trusted connections with community members. Navigators will provide critical application assistance including creating an account on the MNsure website, submitting required income or immigration documentation, health plan selection, appeals and renewals for low-income individuals and families.
A grant of $80,000 to CARE Clinic (CARE) will support CARE in sustaining a bilingual (Spanish-English) MNsure outreach navigator to work with the Latine community. The navigator will work to increase outreach capacity and provide insurance enrollment for diverse populations requiring culturally and linguistically competent care in rural southeast Minnesota. The navigator will provide enrollment assistance, conduct targeted outreach, connect with small employers with a high percentage of Latine employees and expand outreach and enrollment opportunities into Wabasha County. Funding will also support CARE in expanding access to preventative, restorative, and urgent dental care to low income, uninsured and/or underinsured residents of Goodhue County.
A grant of $80,000 of Children’s Dental Services (CDS) will support their providing a full range of restorative dental treatment to unserved children, pregnant women, and families in Central and Northern Minnesota. The CDS leadership team will partner with community leaders, stakeholders, and families to best determine how to disseminate information about service expansion and collect feedback to inform service delivery. Outreach and mobile care teams will work with currently underserved communities, including new Americans and Tribal Communities. Direct care will be also provided by a diverse team including an Advanced Dental Therapist, a Dentist Hygienist, and a Dental Assistant.
A grant of $50,000 to Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio (CLUES) will support culturally responsive and individualized navigation services at CLUES’ Minneapolis and St. Paul offices. MNsure outreach navigators will promote availability of navigation services and MNsure options through CLUES’ food access programs, community events and strategic online outreach, utilizing the organization’s robust online presence and large following. Outreach communications will also be made available at CLUES’ Willmar and Austin offices.
A grant of $50,000 to Generations Health Care Initiatives will support their partnership with the Duluth Area Family YMCA, which has broadened the Insure Duluth Coalition’s outreach to key vulnerable populations in St. Louis County. Funding will support MNsure navigator assistance focused on outreach within the YMCA facilities and programs, which are strategically aligned with individuals who are uninsured at higher rates, as well as other outreach opportunities to hard-to-reach populations throughout southern St. Louis County.
A grant of $50,000 to Hmong American Partnership (HAP) will continue to support HAP’s qualified Karen-speaking navigator HAP’s navigators educate and support immigrant and refugee communities and populations struggling to access and enroll in the MNsure system. Many people HAP supports are low-income and often have limited experience with insurance, with many questioning whether they can manage the cost of accessing and maintaining health insurance.
A grant of $80,000 to Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (MMLA) will support MMLA’s successful navigator program, with navigators providing direct enrollment and renewal assistance in MMLA’s St. Cloud office and throughout the region, including Cold Spring, Melrose, Long Prairie, Staples, Wadena, Brainerd, Little Falls, Milaca, Elk River, Monticello, and Buffalo. Video and phone appointments will also be offered. Navigators will also assist community members through weekly drop-in opportunities and at targeted enrollment events throughout the year. MMLA’s comprehensive community outreach will include direct mailers; digital newsletters; monthly Facebook Live presentations in English, Spanish, Somali and Vietnamese; community events; and partnership with over 150 other community agencies.
A grant of $120,000 to Navigator Coalition will provide support for the group of 36 organizations that advocate on behalf of navigators and consumers. Navigators assist Minnesotans in accessing health insurance and are essential to supporting Minnesotans with limited English proficiency, technology limitations, and other challenges. With this funding, the coalition will continue to support one another in connecting consumers with healthcare coverage and advancing issues with key leaders that will improve access to coverage.
A grant of $70,000 to Seeds of Justice will support efforts to improve healthcare access for underserved populations in Southwest Minnesota — particularly mixed status families and single mothers. Efforts include monthly educational workshops about healthcare coverage and enrollment, and individualized enrollment assistance from a healthcare navigator. Seed of Justice will also gather community feedback about barriers to accessing healthcare and coverage and collaborate with local entities that have established connections with those who may face barriers in accessing healthcare and coverage.
A grant of $80,000 to Native American Community Clinic will support culturally responsive and individualized MNsure outreach and enrollment assistance. Navigators will conduct in-clinic screenings and carry out outreach activities at encampments and community gatherings like MNsure Mondays, HIV/Hep C testing events, Back to School Kids Day events, NACC Open House, and others. NACC will further engage with leaders and partner organizations like Minneapolis American Indian Center, Ain DIY YUNG, Division of Indian Works, Waite House, Lydia Apartments, Simpson Housing, and Agate Housing. They will also serve as a referral site for Qualified Health Plan brokers.
A grant of $100,000 to Northpoint Health & Wellness Center, Inc. will support MNsure outreach navigators to conduct outreach and enrollment activities by developing and strengthening relationships with cultural community nonprofits and schools to support enrollment of their constituents, with a focus on mixed status families and pregnant or recently post-partum individuals. Navigators will plan and facilitate enrollment events, assisting individuals and families in their first language to complete the enrollment process for insurance and other benefits such as SNAP, dental services, perinatal support, and health and human services programs available through NorthPoint.
A grant of $80,000 to Northwest Indian Community Development Center (NWICDC) will support NWICDC’s ongoing efforts to address health equity through health coverage outreach, application, and enrollment assistance for low-income individuals and families. NWICDC will also use community voice to examine larger-scale health equity systems, partnership development, and planning that addresses all the social drivers of health to create sustainable and regenerative solutions in pursuit of health equity.
A grant of $75,000 to Open Door Health Center will support efforts to identify and reach populations in Southern Minnesota who face barriers to obtaining medical and dental care and insurance coverage. Open Door’s goal is to successfully screen, assist and (re)enroll individuals during the redetermination period and integrate those efforts, with the goal of increasing the number of individuals receiving dental services. Staff will complete outreach and education activities to reach 2,000 individuals per year with information about health insurance plans, enrollment, and benefits. Enrollment staff will assist individuals with insurance renewals and/or applications, with appointments offered in-person and virtually at both the Open Door Mankato clinic and the Jordan dental clinic.
A grant of $80,000 to Portico Healthnet will support ongoing efforts to help consumers navigate the complicated health insurance enrollment process. Portico’s team of certified MNsure navigators provide year-round screening and application assistance at more than 20 sites in the seven-county metro area. They focus on connecting with clients where they are — online and in person at libraries, schools, food shelves and other gathering spaces. Portico’s multi-lingual, culturally competent navigators provide one-on-one screening, application assistance, health insurance literacy education, and client advocacy services. They also provide referrals to social services to address social drivers of health, including affordable housing, chemical dependency, childcare, employment, food, heat/energy assistance and legal services.
A grant of $75,000 to Rainbow Health will support efforts to expand MNsure outreach navigator services to LGBTQ communities, analyze data to understand gaps in information about uninsurance rates of LGBTQ communities, advocate for inclusivity of the LGBTQ community, work in conjunction with other community health programs to provide information about accessing health insurance, and provide the Minnesota Department of Human Services and MNsure with formal feedback about policies and forms to better reach those living with HIV or who identify as LGBTQ.
A grant of $75,000 to United Community Action Partnership will support redetermination efforts within the Latine, Karen and Somali communities of Willmar and Kandiyohi County, as well as the continuation of the Community Connector Program. That program works to increase economic stability, improve access to quality education and healthcare, support refugee, immigrant and migrant communities, and provide community members with the supports and services needed to improve social drivers of health in their families and communities.
A grant of $72,039 to State Health Access Data Assistance Center (SHADAC) will support SHADAC in updating the Profile of Minnesota’s Uninsured tool, which describes the geographic and demographic characteristics of the uninsured and the community context in which they live. The tool supports targeted outreach and enrollment activities and provides the necessary foundation for identifying the location of communities with the highest rates of uninsurance (“hot spots”), as well as measurement of social vulnerability levels for each ZIP Code in Minnesota.
HEALTHY START GRANTS
A grant of $100,000 to Minnesota Coalition for Family Home Visiting will support the Coalition’s development and delivery of a free training series for family home visitors on the impact of bias and racism on maternal and child health. It will also support increased coordination and collaboration among home visiting and maternal and early childhood services to better meet the needs of families, and increase coalition participation among Greater MN and Tribal communities.
A grant of $100,000 to Way to Grow will support their efforts to provide families with health and early education resources, facilitate screenings of children ages 3–5, develop and strengthen partnerships with early childhood care and education providers, provide parents with information and guidance on high-quality child care programs, engage parents in advocacy training, and participate in local, regional and statewide coalitions, advisory committees and advocacy groups.