June 9, 2023
(Austin) — Central Health, Travis County’s hospital district, delivered its latest annual report on Wednesday, May 13, detailing how it increased the number of patients served by 4% in 2022 compared to the previous year. Central Health provided healthcare for 152,435 individuals, or one out of every nine Travis County residents.
“Central Health is continuing to innovate and respond to changes in the local healthcare environment,” said Central Health President and CEO Mike Geeslin. “In just a few short years, we’ve moved from temporary clinics in eastern Travis County to constructing permanent health and wellness centers in Del Valle, Hornsby Bend and a multispecialty clinic in East Austin. Our new Healthcare Equity Plan is providing a roadmap for the future of safety net healthcare in our community and will guide how we can make life better for the people that we serve for decades to come.”
Created by Travis County voters in 2004, Central Health’s mission is to improve the health of the community by caring for those who need it most. More than 90% of Central Health’s FY 2022 budget funded health care for people with low income, even as the district maintained the lowest tax rate of any urban hospital district in Texas.
BUILDING A BETTER SAFETY-NET HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
To better fulfill its mission, in 2022 Central Health developed new primary care locations in underserved areas; expanded its network of specialty care providers; and improved eligibility and health coverage enrollment services. Central Health’s newly released Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 annual report highlights this growth. Highlights from FY 2022 include:
Central Health provided access to hospital, primary, dental, specialty and other care for 51,318 uninsured Travis County residents (up to 100% of the federal poverty level) through the Medical Access Program (MAP). For an individual, that’s a household income of $14,580 for an individual (2023) and $30,000 for a family of four. In addition, 68,739 residents received coverage through MAP Basic, a program with primary care, prescription and other essential services for residents earning up to 200% of FPL. ($29,160 for an individual; $60,000 for a family of four).
Central Health served our patients through 228 provider locations, including community health centers, hospitals, specialists, dentists, and urgent care locations. This is a 12% increase over FY 2021; the district added 24 new providers to its network, including opioid treatment, primary care, and specialty providers. For the first time, this number includes providers working directly for Central Health.
Central Health funded 532,644 primary care visits through its broad network of health care providers.
Central Health assisted 75,339 callers with MAP eligibility and enrollment and received 23,261 online applications for MAP. The district also provided premium assistance for 2,102 residents who purchased insurance under the Affordable Care Act, mostly customers of Central Health’s own Sendero Health Plans, which enrolled more than 7,800 members in 2022.
With the adoption of the district’s Healthcare Equity Plan in February 2022, Central Health continues to sharpen its focus on resolving systemic inequities in Travis County health care. This includes investments in new facilities in Eastern Travis County, such as the Hornsby Bend and Del Valle Health and Wellness Centers, which broke ground in FY 2022.
Read and download the FY 2022 Annual Report at WWW.CENTRALHEALTH.NET.