Safety net grants awarded

Kansas City area organizations, on both sides of the state line, have been awarded $6.75 million in grants through the Health Forward Foundation.

The safety net program funding will support improved access to physical health care and oral health care for all communities in the service area, a spokesman stated.

“Since Health Forward’s inception, ensuring access to affordable and high-quality care has been one of our highest priorities” said Angie Williams, Health Forward Foundation Director of Community Investment and Impact. “These organizations work every day to provide services that are equitable, inclusive, and culturally competent.”

Health Forward received 55 proposals requesting nearly $9.7 million.
Later this month, Health Forward will adopt a new purpose statement and announce updated strategies. It will not accept unsolicited applications for Safety Net funding in 2022. Each grant in this final round will last for 18 months and conclude by June 30, 2023.

Organizations that serve Wyandotte County and were awarded safety net grants include:

Caritas Clinics (Duchesne Clinic) was awarded $235,500 to provide a wide array of primary health services, care navigation and wrap-around support for almost 1,400 residents of Wyandotte County.

Community Health Council of Wyandotte County was awarded $330,000 to improve access to quality health care and decrease associated costs for communities in Wyandotte County by improving care coordination, patient-provider relationships and disease management.

El Centro was awarded $297,000 to improve access to culturally competent, quality, affordable health care services for Latino communities in Wyandotte and Johnson counties.

Family Health Care was awarded $300,000 to provide quality medical care to Wyandotte County residents and surrounding communities.

KU Endowment was awarded $67,500 to improve health and patient satisfaction by providing urgent and specialty care at the JayDoc clinic. Funding will expand the services available to patients nad continue to support high-quality care.

Mercy and Truth Medical Missions was awarded $161,250 to achieve optimal health for residents of Wyandotte and Johnson counties by providing high-quality, accessible, patient-centered health care, including prevention, treatment and monitoring.

Swope Health was awarded $506,250 to provide comprehensive, integrated, primary-care services for more than 40,000 residents of Greater Kansas City.

Vibrant Health was awarded $351,000 to provide primary medical, oral and behavioral health services, with integrated language, financial and transportation assistance for Wyandotte County residents.