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PROPOSED ORDINANCE AMENDMENT
ESTABLISHING THE COOK COUNTY HEALTH AND HOSPITALS SYSTEM’S DIRECT ACCESS PROGRAM TO SUPPORT A HEALTHY COOK COUNTY WORKFORCE.
BE IT ORDAINED, by the Cook County Board of Commissioners that Chapter 38 Health and Human Services, Article VII, Sec. 38-157 through 38-162 of the Cook County Code, is hereby enacted as follows:
COOK COUNTY DIRECT ACCESS PROGRAM
Sec. 38-157. Short title.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Ordinance Establishing a Cook County Health and Hospitals System direct access program."
Sec. 38-158. Definitions.
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
Cook County Health and Hospitals System also referred to as "CCHHS", means the public health system comprised of the facilities at, and the services provided by or through, the Ambulatory and Community Health Network, Cermak Health Services of Cook County, Community Triage Center, Cook County Department of Public Health, Provident Hospital of Cook County, Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center, John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County, (collectively, the "CCHHS Facilities") and the CountyCare Health Plan.
County means the County of Cook, a body politic and corporate of Illinois.
County Board means the Board of Commissioners of Cook County, Illinois.
Direct Access Program means the new program established by CCHHS to improve the coordination of care for uninsured residents of Cook County, herein known as “the program.” CCHHS may identify an alternative name upon implementation of the program.
Medical home means a health care facility responsible for the provision and coordination of all needed health care services for a patient.
Ordinance means the Ordinance Establishing a Cook County Health and Hospitals System direct access program.
Primary Care Provider means an Illinois licensed independent practitioner practicing at a patient’s medical home who is the primary point of contact and provider of health care services for that patient.
Uninsured means all uninsured residents of Cook County who earn up to 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, who are not otherwise eligible for public health insurance.
Sec. 38-159. Establishing a direct access program.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Cook County Health and Hospitals System (herein referred to as CEO), or his/her designee, is hereby authorized and empowered to establish a direct access program to ensure uninsured residents of Cook County have access to quality health care:
1. Leveraging CCHHS’ existing charity care program.
2. Building on the infrastructure and operations systems of the CountyCare Health Plan to ensure proper care coordination, provider relations, and data analytics.
3. Maximizing the community partnerships and linkages established over the past 180 years of service to the residents of Cook County.
Sec. 38-160. Elements of the CCHHS Direct Access Program.
1. A centralized system of administration.
2. Community-based outreach, enrollment and enrollee support.
3. A single enrollment application that limits the number and type of documents as much as possible while still maintaining program integrity.
4. A membership card indicating enrollment in the program.
5. Assignment of a medical home and primary care provider.
6. A predictable and affordable cost structure for services provided by CCHHS.
7. An electronic information system that facilitates care coordination and provides the medical home access to enrollment status, contact info, primary care provider and other health utilization data.
Sec. 38-161. Eligibility.
All uninsured residents of Cook County who earn up to 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, who are not otherwise eligible for public health insurance shall be eligible for the program.
Sec. 38-162. Implementation.
Implementation of the program shall start as soon as is practical with the goal of launching the program on December 1, 2016 but no later than June 1, 2017. Initially, program enrollees will only be able to access CCHHS facilities and providers through the program.
Sec. 38-163. Enrollee Feedback and Engagement.
CCHHS shall facilitate regular public forums with enrollees utilizing the program. Such forums shall allow enrollees the opportunity to provide feedback on the implementation of the program, identify ongoing needs and gaps in existing program services, and convey their level of customer satisfaction. CCHHS shall notify all current enrollees of the time and location of public forums and encourage their participation. Other processes such as surveys and focus groups may be used in addition to the public forums.
Sec. 38-164. Reporting Requirement.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Cook County Health and Hospitals System may provide quarterly progress reports on the implementation of the direct access program to the Cook County Board of Commissioners.
Effective date: This ordinance shall be in effect immediately upon passage.end