Osceola County, Fla., To Use Grants To Coordinate Primary Care for the Uninsured

To curb use of hospital emergency rooms for nonemergency care and steer uninsured patients toward primary care physicians, a grass-roots organization in Osceola County, Fla., is planning to use two grants to hire an individual who will coordinate the county's indigent care system, the Orlando Sentinel reports. Community Vision, a "problem-solving organization" in the county, will use a $123,000 grant from the Dr. Phillips Foundation and a $60,000 grant from Florida Hospital to fill the position for three years. Initially, the coordinator will work to create a network of physicians willing to donate their time to treat uninsured patients, in particular those with chronic illnesses. The coordinator also will work in conjunction with the county Health Department, which can only coordinate care for a limited number of uninsured patients, Maureen Kersmarki, chair of Community Vision's Health Issues Task Force, said. She added that the task force will eventually examine how to expand primary care into remote areas of the state and provide affordable prescriptions (Stanfield, Orlando Sentinel, 5/29).