HOW Project Access WORKS FOR YOU:

THE PATIENT

Project Access is a physician-led community effort to provide health care for low-income, working but uninsured Spokane County residents.  It is managed by the Spokane County Medical Society Foundation, in partnership with hospitals, business, and community organizations, and is funded through grants and donations.

To qualify Project Access patients are employed but make less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level.  They don't qualify for Medicaid or Medicare and don't have private insurance.  Once patients are enrolled in the program, they receive an ID card to present when they see a Project Access physician.

Patients visits are "billed" to Project Access on the standard HCFA 1500 insurance claim form, Project Access then tracks and assigns the patient to a specialist physician depending on the referral, and coordinates all follow-up appointments through a database of volunteer physicians.  At the end of the year, physicians will get a report showing how many patients they saw and the value of charity care (based on coding from the 1500 forms).

If patients are in need of surgery, all local Spokane hospitals accept Project Access patients.  And pharmaceuticals, lab tests, and other ancillary services are available to patients at little or nor cost.

Project Access has developed care coordination plans that include translation and transportation, ensuring patients navigate the system and gain access to social services that enable them to continue to receive adequate care and help them attain health insurance.

To learn more about how Project Access has helped local patients, click here.

Eligibility Guidelines:  

To be eligible for Project Access, the patient must

• be a resident of Spokane County;

• have no medical insurance;

• are not currently receiving other state or federal medical benefits – although if they qualify, we will assist them in making application and getting enrolled and

• have a family income that does not exceed two hundred percent (200%) of Federal Poverty Level (currently $19,600 for one person or 40,000 annually for a family of four).

Enrollment Guidelines: 

Patients can obtain Project Access paperwork at any area CHAS Clinic, Christ Clinic, House of Charity, Native Health, People's Clinic, and Spokane Falls Family Clinic. Applications can also be obtained directly from Project Access. Eligibility specialists gather income verification, assess patients’ eligibility for state or federal programs (including Medicaid/Healthy Options, CHIP, and Basic Health Plan), and enroll patients.

 

Patients may also be enrolled at the request of a participating private physician who has an eligible patient already established on his/her caseload or at the request of one of our area’s primary care residency programs affiliated with the University of Washington School of Medicine. 

Primary Care Guidelines:

Patients are enrolled for six months for primary care  or three months for specialty care.  Patients who are still seeing the physicians to whom they are referred and who still qualify for Project Access may have their enrollment extended if they still meet income requirements and if the physician requests it.

 

Primary care may be provided by one of the following low cost/free primary care clinics:

1. Community Health Association of Spokane (CHAS) - 5 locations
   Deer Park CHAS Medical Clinic - 401 S Main
   Downtown CHAS Medical Clinic - 238 W Sprague, Spokane, WA
   Maple CHAS Medical Clinic - 3919 N Maple St, Spokane, WA
   NE CHAS Medical Clinic - 4001 N Cook St, Spokane, WA
   Valley CHAS Medical Clinic - 9227 E Main St, Spokane, WA
2. Christ Clinic - 2709 W Boone, Spokane, WA
3. ECCO Clinic - 500 S Stone St, Spokane, WA
4. House of Charity  - 32 W Pacific, Spokane, WA
5. Native Health of Spokane  - 505 N Foothills Blvd #300, Spokane, WA
6. Ogden Hall Shelter for Women & Children  - 2828 W Mallon, Spokane, WA
7. Peoples Clinic  - 829 W Broadway, Spokane, WA
8. Spokane Falls Family Clinic - 120 W Mission, Spokane, WA
9. Union Gospel Mission - 1224 E Trent, Spokane, WA

Specialty Care Guidelines: 

Patients needing the services of a specialist will be referred to the Project Access office by their primary care physician/clinic.  A Project Access coordinator will process a referral to the appropriate specialist. 

Specialist referrals are for three months (90 days) but may be extended at the request of the specialist and/or the patient’s primary care physician/clinic.

Specialty care referrals are only for those health care services beyond the scope of the primary care physician/clinic.

Specialties currently available through Project Access are:

Cardiac Surgery Cardiology Colon & Rectal Surgery Dermatology Home Care Internal Medicine Internal Medicine/Cardiovascular Disease Internal Medicine/Gastroenterology Internal Medicine/Pulmonary Disease Neuro Surgery Neurology

OB/GYN Oncology Ophthalmology Orthopaedic Surgery Otolaryngology Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Physical Therapy Plastic Surgery Podiatry Rheumatology Vascular Surgery