Healthcare Access Made Easy

Grantee: Chinese Information and Service Center
Timeframe: July 2014 – June 2017 | Total Amount: $295,568

Year 1: July 2014 – June 2015. Amount: $95,284
Year 2: July 2015 – June 2016. Amount: $95,284
Year 3: July 2016 – June 2017. Amount: $105,000

Since 1972, CISC has provided information, referral, advocacy, social and support services to Asian immigrant families—including Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Filipino, and Asian Indian families—by adopting a cradle-to-grave, holistic approach. Our staff members speak 11 different languages and are able to provide interpretation and translation services when required. In addition, CISC’s extensive
experience assisting clients to understand and navigate health care options and benefits, and its broad network of partnerships within King County (we currently work with more than 20 community partners to deliver services), ideally positions the organization to address the persistent healthcare disparities experienced by many Asian immigrant families.

This proposal would represent the addition of services as well as an expansion of CISC’s existing services. Target clients would include: 1) Recent (in the United States for fewer than 5 years), low-income immigrants 65 and over who are not eligible for Medicaid yet but who can’t afford to buy health insurance under the Affordable Care Act; 2) Recent, low-income immigrants of any age without tax credits and therefore
ineligible for any subsidies under the ACA; and 3) Immigrants who may have insurance, or qualify for insurance, but who fail to access services due to language, cultural, or transportation challenges. By working to improve access to a broad range of health resources (including mental health), as well as to link and coordinate care among available resources, we ensure access to quality health care for populations underserved by the current system.

Under the terms of this proposal, CISC would conduct education and outreach events with the goal of reaching 10,000 underserved individuals with information about the availability and access of health care resources. We would also directly assist 600 individuals (approximately 50 per month) with accessing resources. Because CISC is well-established and trusted by the Asian community in King County, we anticipate that many of these individuals would also be referred to our other agency programs that support whole families: CISC is both a direct and indirect provider of education, employment, and housing services, and continually seeks to integrate services in order to help immigrant families succeed in their new lives.