Methodist Healthcare Ministries awards $25.1 million in health care grants
More than 80 grantees funded across South Texas
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc., a San Antonio-based not-for-profit organization that funds health care services to low-income families and the uninsured, will award $25.1 million in community grants to more than 80 agencies to assist hundreds of thousands throughout its 74-county service area. View 2016 funded partners.
Given annually, these grants are rooted in partnerships that support access to care, integrated delivery systems and patient-centered models. In partnership with Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), safety-net clinics, counseling services and regional community projects, Methodist Healthcare Ministries' goal is to create measurable impact at the community and regional levels to further establish health care networks. Awards are based on five core areas of giving: Primary & Preventive Care, Dental Services, Regionalization & Community Engagement, Social Services & Behavioral Health and Health Care Professional Shortages.
"Over time, we've refined our decisions in grant-making to an outcomes-based approach to ensure that our clients' needs are met, especially in rural areas where access to health care is limited," said Methodist Healthcare Ministries' President & CEO, Kevin C. Moriarty. "In my 20-year tenure, I've seen Methodist Healthcare Ministries' progression and advancement and it's exciting to think of all we could do into the future."
Funding is allocated to nearly 140 grant programs to deepen collaborative efforts, incentivize quality health outcomes, leverage and strengthen health care delivery systems and promote sustainable systems change.
The single largest area of giving this year is to Social Services & Behavioral Health. Nearly $10 million will be awarded to support integrated health care programs to include the systematic integration of behavioral health and social services. Funding to support Primary & Preventive Care is the second largest area with awards totaling $7.4 million.
Two San Antonio-based FQHCs, CentroMed and CommuniCare Health Centers, will receive the largest awards locally. CentroMed will receive $2.4 million for services in Bexar County.
"We are pleased to once again partner with Methodist Healthcare Ministries," said Dr. Ernesto Gomez, president & CEO at CentroMed. "This funding support will enable us to provide health care services to more patients, in particular, working families that may be uninsured, children with special needs, homeless families and victims of family violence."
CommuniCare Health Centers will also receive more than $2 million to serve patients who have limited access to psychiatric services.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries provides funding and/or works in partnership with 19 of the 22 FQHCs located in its service area. "The collaboration with our FQHC partners is essential to reaching underserved communities, particularly in rural communities where access to care, most especially access to behavioral health services, is severely limited," said Moriarty. "They play a critical role in helping us achieve our mission of creating access to quality care for all, regardless of ability to pay."
Methodist Healthcare Ministries strategically seeks partnerships that align with its mission and services and support its objectives. Methodist Healthcare Ministries' board of directors oversees the selection of funded partners and requests are considered on an annual basis by invitation only; unsolicited proposals are not accepted.
Since being founded, Methodist Healthcare Ministries has invested more than $230 million in grant-making to improve community health care in its 74-county service area which makes up 29 percent of Texas counties.
In addition to grant-making, Methodist Healthcare Ministries also operates two San Antonio-based primary health care clinics, and School Based Health Centers in the Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City and Marion Independent School Districts. The clinics address the needs of the uninsured and low-income families by providing services at no cost or on a sliding scale fee. The direct services Methodist Healthcare Ministries provides are a cornerstone of its charitable mission of creating access to care.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries' mission also includes its one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System – the largest healthcare system in South Texas. This creates a unique avenue to ensure the Methodist Healthcare System continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all, and revenue to Methodist Healthcare Ministries for its programs and services.
About Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.
Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. is a private, faith-based not-for-profit organization dedicated to creating access to health care for the uninsured through direct services, community partnerships and strategic grant-making in 74 counties across South Texas. The mission of the organization is "Serving Humanity to Honor God" by improving the physical, mental and spiritual health of those least served in the Rio Texas Conference area of The United Methodist Church. The mission also includes Methodist Healthcare Ministries' one-half ownership of the Methodist Healthcare System, the largest healthcare system in South Texas, which creates a unique avenue to ensure that it continues to be a benefit to the community by providing quality care to all and charitable care when needed.