| RHC in the News | |
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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| About the RHC | |
The RHC is a collaborative effort of St. Louis City, St. Louis County, the state of Missouri, health providers, and community members to improve the health of uninsured and underinsured citizens in St. Louis City and County.
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HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GATEWAY!
The Gateway to Better Health coverage model reaches the one year mark of operations on July 1, 2013, with approximately 25,000 individuals enrolled in the program to date. Through Gateway, patients have accessed approximately 24,000 speciality, 5,400 dental, and 40,000 primary care visits over the past year. Efforts to extend the Gateway demonstration past its anticipated ending date of December 31, 2013 are currently in progress in order to preserve this access to medical care in 2014. Visit our website or Facebook to learn more, or contact Angela Brown, Director of Operations, with questions.
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TELLING THE STORY: A DECADE OF HEALTH
As we continue efforts to share the Decade Review of Health Status report with the community, the RHC is excited to announce several innovative partnerships with community organizations. We hope you join us! 
Off the Charts: Data and Arts as Tools for Social Change
On July 19, the RHC will host a joint workshop with the Regional Arts Commission and the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance, "Off the Charts." Please join us on Friday, July 19 from 8:00am-1:30pm for a morning of creativity and collaboration! Register now at http://offthecharts.eventbrite.com/. By examining data through an artistic lens , you will develop critical data evaluation skills, discover free resources to find data for your own projects, explore how the arts can make data more accessible, and much more. Space is still left, so sign up today!
"Alive and Well STL" Hallelujah 1600 Radio Series 
In collaboration with RareGem Productions and the St. Louis Integrated Health Network (IHN), the RHC will be hosting a radio show on health in the St. Louis community. Starting August 5, Bethany Johnson-Javois, IHN CEO, will host conversations on health in St. Louis, Mondays at 10am on Hallelujah 1600 AM. The show's blog will include more information on topics discussed during the show, an area for comments and questions, resources on wellness and healthy living, and much more. Using findings in the Decade Review report, Bethany will interview local health leaders, community members, and researchers to celebrate regional success in reducing health disparities and increasing access to care, discuss persistent health disparities, and explore opportunities to address these issues moving forward, and more. Topics will include breast cancer, HIV/AIDS, mental health, asthma, and food. Each program will end in a call to action for listeners to make positive changes in their daily lives. Stay tuned for more info!
The RHC continues to share the Report and its findings throughout the community. If you, your organization, community group, classroom, or business would like the RHC to attend a meeting and share more about the Report, e mail Rosie Stafford.
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MAKING HEADWA Y ON HEROIN
The Regional Heroin Collaborative continues to make progress on managing heroin abuse in the St. Louis Region. We would like to congratulate the NCADA on receiving the "Outstanding Community Prevention Award" from the Office of National Drug Control Policy. As a direct result of the efforts of the Regional Heroin Collaborative, Bridgeway Behavioral Health and Preferred Family Healthcare have hired nine full-time employees to increase the number of heroin-addicted individuals served and reduce wait times to enroll individuals in treatment services. In just the three month span of January-March 2013, the funding has been used to complete more than 500 opiate screenings, start over 60 individuals on medically-assisted treatment, and refer nearly 200 individuals to interim services. As additional outcomes emerge from this regional effort, we will share them with you in our future communications. The RHC is proud to be a part of funding this unique partnership for the region.
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 MEDICAID EXPANSION ...TO BE CONTINUED.
In response to Missouri's decision not to expand Medicaid this year, Herb Kuhn, CEO of the Missouri Hospital Association offers insight on the decision in his May 17 newsletter. In the meantime, the RHC, along with community partners, will be working towards long-term solutions regarding continued access to care in our region. For more information, check out our broadcast with the Nine Network on this subject: " Health, Money, and Politics: Missouri's Medicaid Debate," and the accompanying discussion guide. |
RHC WELCOMES BILLIKENS AND BEARS THIS SUMMER!  
This summer, the RHC is proud to host Brian Bouchard, first year medical student at Washington University, Meghan Jendusa, recent graduate of the Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs and Saint Louis University's Urban Affairs and Political Science programs, and Anna Vigdorova, current undergraduate student at Saint Louis University. Please join us in welcoming these interns to the team this summer.
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DON'T MISS THE CONVERSATION: FOLLOW THE RHC ON TWITTER AND FACEBOOK!
For real-time updates on the work of the RHC, including findings from the Health Status report and updates on Missouri's Medicaid decision, follow our updates:
 
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Your dedication and continued support are what make these efforts possible. We look forward to continued partnership with you in the months ahead.
Sincerely,
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Robert Fruend
Chief Executive Officer
St. Louis Regional Health Commission |
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