Press Releases: Colorado
August 9, 2010
Kaiser Permanente Celebrates National Health Center Week with New Funding for Colorado Safety Net Clinics
$500,000 Grant Program Focuses on Improving Patient Care
DENVER — Colorado safety net clinics will receive a healthy dose of new funding from the state’s largest non-profit health plan, Kaiser Permanente. The announcement of the new $500,000 safety net grant program is part of Kaiser Permanente’s celebration of National Health Center Week, August 8–14, a chance to recognize the work of community health centers which provide affordable, high quality care to medically vulnerable and underserved individuals.
The new grant program is aimed at directly improving the quality of care patients receive in Colorado’s safety net clinics, which fill an urgent need during these challenging economic times.
The number of uninsured patients in Colorado has increased dramatically, while public funding has decreased. There is also a serious shortage of front-line health care workers. Kaiser Permanente’s Community Benefit grant will provide a new source of support for these clinics, which serve over a half million people every year.
“Our mission is to improve the health of our community, and by supporting Colorado’s safety net clinics, we’re helping to ensure that excellent medical care is available to underserved patients who are often hardest hit by illness and injury,” said Donna Lynne, DrPH, president of Kaiser Permanente Colorado.
Individual grants will range from $10,000 to $100,000 and will be available to non-profit health centers located in the Kaiser Permanente Colorado service region in Denver, Boulder, Longmont, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Fort Collins and Greeley.
To qualify for a grant, organizations must apply and demonstrate need in one of the following areas:
- Quality Improvement Projects: Clinical programs to improve quality outcomes for patients.
- Capacity Building: Programs to increase the number of patients served.
- Knowledge Dissemination: Support for continuing education for staff members.
- Community Integration: Linking patients to other community resources.
Since 2009, Kaiser Permanente has committed more than $2.5 million to Colorado’s safety net clinics, including $1 million in scholarships and loan repayments to address the shortage of medical staff in southern Colorado clinics. In addition, Kaiser Permanente physicians spend thousands of hours volunteering in community clinics across the state, sharing best practices and providing continuing medical education for safety net providers.
For application details and additional information on the safety net grant program, please visit Kaiser Permanente’s Community Benefit website or email Sylvia.Kamau-Small@kp.org.
About Kaiser Permanente Colorado
Kaiser Permanente Colorado is the state’s largest nonprofit health plan, proudly working to improve the lives and health of Denver, Boulder, and Southern Colorado area residents for 40 years. Kaiser Permanente Colorado provides comprehensive health care services to more than 500,000 members through 20 medical offices and a network of affiliated hospitals and physicians. The health plan was recently named “Highest in Member Satisfaction” among Commercial Health Plans by J.D. Power and Associates for the third straight year. Kaiser Permanente was also named the top-ranked commercial health plan and Medicare plan in Colorado by US News & World Report/NCQA. In 2009, Kaiser Permanente proudly directed more than $82 million to community benefit programs to improve the health of all Coloradans. For more Kaiser Permanente news, visit kp.org/newscenter or follow us on twitter @kpcolorado or facebook.com/kpcolorado.