Manatee County's MCR Health Services believes it is key to remedying health care shortfall
MANATEE -- If every Manatee County resident with health insurance used MCR Health Services instead of private physicians, underserved and uninsured residents could have their primary care needs taken care of without the county having to pitch in a penny.
"We would still need help with speciality care," said Dr. Bill Colgate, senior vice president of MCR Health Services, a large not-for-profit federally qualified health center with 28 sites in Manatee, Sarasota and DeSoto counties and 191 doctors and other health care professionals. "But primary care? It could be done."
While it is not realistic to expect all Manatee residents to abandon their private doctors, the health insurance revenue from just a portion would generate income needed to pay for some primary care for the medically needy, Colgate said.
"We are delivering high quality care," Colgate said of MCR Health Services. "In 2015, we saw 109,697 patients. We provided $24.7 million in unreimbursed services."
Of people who live at or below 100 percent of the federal poverty line in the three counties, which is $24,250 for a family of four, MCR Health Services provides
care to 40 percent or 50,202 people, Colgate said.
Colgate brought his team Wednesday to the sixth meeting of the Manatee Healthcare Advisory Board.
He believes MCR Health Care is the puzzle piece most likely to somehow help solve the long-term provision of health care for Manatee's most underserved residents.
"We are the linchpin," Colgate said.
Colgate said he is incredulous more people Manatee citizens with higher incomes don't use MCR Health Services.
"I can guarantee you that people don't know they can come in and pay on a sliding scale," Colgate said.
Colgate told the board MCR Health Services sees primary care, access to speciality care and dentistry as the areas of greatest need in Manatee.
After the meeting, board Chairman Stephen Hall was asked what MCR Health Services' reputation is in the community. MCR used to be Manatee County Rural Health until a rebranding about a year ago.
"All I can tell you is that for me, personally, several years ago I was in between jobs and I was able to afford COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act insurance) for me and my wife but I didn't get it for my kids so my kids went on Florida Kid's Care for about six months," Hall said.
"In that time, my daughter saw a doctor at the Lawton Chiles Family Health Center by Mixon Fruit Farm and that service was equal to or better than any other service that I had. I don't know the overall communities' feeling, but mine is that I hold them in high regard."
Hall said he likes MCR Health Services core philosophy, which is to focus on wellness and health.
"It does us no good to treat somebody without giving them a way to take care of themselves," Hall said. "Wellness and prevention is the wave of the future, and I think they are recognizing that, and they are doing it successfully."
MCR Health Services fast facts:
It is among the largest and most diversified federally qualified health centers in the southeastern United States.
Delivers approximately two-thirds of the babies born in Manatee County and all babies born in DeSoto County.
Employs 633.
Richard Dymond, Herald reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7072 or contact him via Twitter@RichardDymond.
This story was originally published April 27, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Manatee County's MCR Health Services believes it is key to remedying health care shortfall ."