RELEASE
Blue Cross celebrates 20 years of supporting health care for Michigan’s uninsured, underinsured with $914,000 in grants to clinics
Teddy Lemmer
| 3 min read
DETROIT, August 20, 2024 – Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) announced today it is celebrating 20 years of supporting access to health care for Michigan’s uninsured and underinsured by awarding $914,000 in grants to 48 health clinics throughout the state to support free or low-cost medical, dental and behavioral health services. Since 2005, Blue Cross has awarded nearly $20 million to Michigan safety net and free clinics statewide.
The Strengthening the Safety Net grant program was established by Blue Cross in 2005 to improve access to affordable health care and improve health equity for Michigan’s uninsured and underinsured patients. Now in its 20th year, the program will help 48 safety net clinics across the state provide free or low-cost health care with grants of up to $25,000 to provide medical, dental, and behavioral health care services. Over the 20 years of the program, Strengthening the Safety Net grantees have:
- Cared for more than 250,000 low income, uninsured or underinsured patients during more than two million patient visits.
- Provided health care valued at over $350 million.
- Reduced the number of unnecessary emergency room visits by 400,000, helping patients access high quality health care while saving the health care system $200 million.
- Helped more than 89,000 people apply for health care coverage.
Strengthening the Safety Net grantees serve approximately 64,000 vulnerable Michigan residents annually. They are located in 24 Michigan counties and plan to provide over 185,000 free or low-cost visits this year. In addition to the Blue Cross funding awarded, local funders are contributing $210,000 in matching grants to free and charitable clinics as a result of the Strengthening the Safety Net program.
“Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is incredibly proud to celebrate 20 years as Michigan’s largest private funder of free clinics and serve our state’s most vulnerable populations,” said Daniel J. Loepp, president and CEO. “Access to high quality primary care, dental and behavioral health services promote healthier and stronger families, engaged communities and overall cost savings for the health care system, which are key facets of our historic social mission to improve the health of all Michigan residents.”
In addition to providing care, grant recipients help patients explore coverage options and connect them to services provided outside of the clinic that improve health such as food, housing and transportation. Grantees reach out to marginalized populations and assist patients in overcoming language and cultural barriers. Seven grantees offer bilingual/bicultural services.
With support from BCBSM, several safety net health clinics have become fully funded, Federally Qualified Health Centers and established sustainable, high quality, integrated health care homes.
For a full overview of the organizations receiving Strengthening the Safety Net grants this year, see here.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit mutual insurance company, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. BCBSM provides health benefits to more than 4.7 million members residing in Michigan in addition to employees of Michigan-headquartered companies residing outside the state. The company has been committed to delivering affordable health care products through a broad variety of plans for businesses, individuals and seniors for more than 80 years. Beyond health care coverage, BCBSM supports impactful community initiatives and provides leadership in improving health care. For more information, visit bcbsm.com and MIBluesPerspectives.com.
