Column: Health care provider Aunt Martha's commits to continue serving patients who lose Medicaid

Chicago Tribune

6 days ago

Raul Garza, president and CEO of Aunt Martha's Health & Wellness, which has 22 health centers including five in the south suburbs, doesn't know exactly how many of the more than 50,000 patients Aunt Martha's serves will lose Medicaid coverage due to President Trump's massive spending and tax cut law.
But at Aunt Martha's, where 65% to 70% of patients are on Medicaid, the federally qualified health center has no plans to drop patients who lose Medicaid coverage.
'Regardless of whether they have Medicaid coverage or not doesn't change Aunt Martha's commitment to servicing them,' said Garza.
'It's unfortunate, some won't have Medicaid, and I'm not saying by Aunt Martha's serving them that will be enough. They might need care that goes beyond what Aunt Martha's is able to provide. If that's the case, they are going to need to engage other health systems that can provide that additional care.'
For those who lose Medicaid coverage and require that more extensive care, he worries some may not be able to access care. He also fears safety net hospitals, which have already been dealing with Medicaid reimbursements that don't cover the cost of care, won't be able to serve all those in need.
More than 300,000 people in Illinois are expected to lose Medicaid coverage including 40,000 in the south suburbs under the new law, said U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, a Democrat from Matteson and chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Health Braintrust.
The law includes $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid, has new 80 hours a month work requirements for Medicaid recipients and requirements that recipients have their eligibility redetermined every six months instead of once a year. Critics say administrative red tape barriers will cause many to lose coverage and note that most Medicaid adults under age 65 are working already or face barriers to work.
The result of the Medicaid cuts will mean those without Medicaid will delay receiving care and end up in emergency rooms sicker and where care is more costly, Kelly said. Health care providers will be forced to serve fewer people, and many rural hospitals will close due to insufficient Medicaid reimbursements, health care advocates and experts have warned.
Roughly 60% of Aunt Martha's Medicaid patients are adults, and 40% are children, said Garza.
'Patients are concerned,' Garza said. 'They are asking us if they are going to lose coverage. The positive thing is many of our patients do work already. But we haven't gotten the exact guidance. We don't have language on the criteria. We don't know how many people would be able to meet the criteria.
'If they have to find a job, are they going to be able to do that? We'll have to see what happens. But we believe several thousand people will be affected, of patients at Aunt Martha's.'
Aunt Martha's message is one of stability, he stressed. In 2023, it received a surprise unsolicited $9 million donation from billionaire MacKenzie Scott's Yield Giving fund after the funder did quiet research into the organization's operations. That funding certainly helps, Garza said.
'We have done the right things over the years to position ourselves to being able to deal with changes,' he said. 'These are certainly dramatic changes. But we're going to be here.
'Does that mean appointments might take a little longer, that it might take longer to get into the clinics? Yeah, but we're not going to deny them. We're still going to see them.'
Aunt Martha's is focused on looking at ways to innovate and create more operational efficiencies. It's experienced at that. Garza noted more than 20 years ago, Aunt Martha's integrated mental health with primary care.
'People thought that was impossible to do back in in early 2000s,' he said. 'We pioneered it in Illinois at Aunt Martha's. From there, we pioneered telehealth as a federally qualified health center. Before the Affordable Care Act, we were already exploring how to provide services to this population in creative, efficient and innovative ways.'
Now among its priorities is looking at how to go above and beyond the telehealth services it provides.
'We have to evaluate the kinds of appointments we provide telehealth for and figure out ways to be more efficient,' Garza said. 'That's part of our approach.'
He said fundraising has also taken on a heightened priority.
'We have to figure out how to do our work, so people aren't left without care.'