Dallas Housing Authority residents’ pathway to finding an affordable medical home is getting easier thanks to a new partnership between DHA and Parkland Health.
Before the initiative, residents had to submit nearly identical paperwork about their address, family, and income to receive a housing voucher from DHA and be added to Parkland’s Financial Assistance program. The new partnership means that DHA and Parkland will share information and allow DHA residents to avoid submitting identical information and multiple appointments to qualify for free or reduced-price care at Parkland Health based on an income-based sliding scale. The shared eligibility for DHA and PFA eliminates a barrier to caring for Dallas County’s vulnerable populations.
“For people who are trying to get ahead and rebuild their financial situation, taking off three or four hours a day to run agency to agency is income out of your pocket,” says said Mike Malaise, Parkland Health’s senior vice president of External Relations.
PFA is a charity care program that helps residents who cannot afford health insurance or out-of-pocket payments receive care for free or at reduced cost based on income. Registering for the program will reduce the price of care and connect the individual with preventative services that improve outcomes and reduce downstream costs. As the safety net hospital, Parkland treats all patients without regard to the ability to pay, but being registered with PFA allows patients to connect with community health workers who can help them get a primary care physician and other services.
PFA includes access to emergency, women and infants, specialty, hospitalization, pharmacy, radiology, and laboratory services as well as a 24-hour nurse line.
If a patient has more clarity on their responsibility to pay for care, they are less likely to avoid care for fear of being saddled with a massive bill, Malaise says. “They will let bad problems become worse problems because they’re terrified of being financially ruined by going into a hospital,” he says. “Once they’re in the program, they have a better understanding of how to access the services and that they’re not going to get gouged at the hospital.”
The partnership is a good deal for taxpayers who pay for the charity and indigent care provided by Parkland, as patients with a stronger connection to the medical system are more likely to avoid downstream medical problems that had previously been neglected. North Texas is home to some of the country’s worst medical debt rates, largely due to the high care costs and low health insurance rates.
Though not all DHA residents will be automatically approved, it will streamline the process of receiving care for the 55,750 people who receive housing from DHA in Dallas County.
“Every day, we look forward to continuing our mission of increasing access to valuable, supportive resources to low-income families and individuals across North Texas. At DHA, we believe that health is essential to the well-being of the people that we serve,” says Troy Broussard, DHA president and CEO. “We are thrilled to enter this collaboration with Parkland in order to increase access to critical care for our Dallas residents.”
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