Access to Health Care

Access to health care is fundamental to the mission of the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City. As our mission states, we aim to provide leadership, advocacy and resources that eliminate barriers to health for the uninsured and underserved in our service area.

In the health care industry, safety net health care represents the diverse group of providers that serve these vulnerable populations. It’s where people go for health care when they have nowhere else to go. Perhaps they lack traditional employer-based health care because of lost a job, or they may be individuals with mental or physical disabilities. These individuals do not have the option to choose from a large list of private health care providers. They often visit the nearest public health department, community clinic or public hospital - providers that accept Medicaid or provide sliding-scale services. These organizations have organizational and legal missions to be providers of last resort.

Safety net providers offer important community services with limited resources, and are continually stretched beyond capacity. Our difficult economic times only exacerbate their needs through increased demand for their services.

At the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City, we take seriously our dedication to our local safety net providers by providing support through our foundation defined grants, while being an advocate for vulnerable populations.