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About Us
2005 Community Benefits Annual Report Summary
CHRISTUS HEALTH is steadfast in its commitment to providing the highest quality healthcare services for all, even as the economy continues to affect family incomes and health insurance coverage. In its most recent Continuing Population Survey 2004, the US Census Bureau reported that the:
• Official poverty rate in 2004 was 12.7 percent, up from 12.5 percent in 2003
• Number of people in poverty now stands at 37 million, up 1.1 million from 2003
• Ranks of the uninsured grew by 800,000 to 45.8 million
• Coverage provided by Medicaid grew to 12.9 percent and 37.5 million, up from 12.4 percent and 35.6 million in 2003.
• Texas (25.1 percent) has the dubious distinction of leading this nation when using the 3-year-average uninsured rates for 2002-2004, and Louisiana (18.8 percent) is fifth. Both are well above the national average of 15.5 percent.
In the face of these daunting statistics, CHRISTUS Health continues on an exemplary Journey to Excellence. The CHRISTUS Health FY2005 management directive to its Regions recommends waiving charges for uninsured patients |with incomes up to 100 percent of federal poverty guidelines and offering discounts for those with incomes up to 400 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
Total Charity Care, the unpaid cost of medical services provided to the uninsured and underinsured, including Medicaid, was more than $228 million, an increase of 32.9 percent when compared with fiscal year 2004.
Our Community Services contribution to the communities we serve is valued at more than $39 million. This is an increase of nearly 27 percent from the previous year; primarily on account of
• Reduced reimbursement rates for medical education
• Participation in new programs through the provision of company paid staff time
• Improved reporting of medical home enrollment net costs
• Increases in the CHRISTUS Fund, CDI and other corporate sponsored services.
In fiscal year 2005 and through these two primary community benefit indicators, CHRISTUS Health has:
• Contributed more than $268 million, or approximately 11.2 percent of Net Patient Revenue to the communities we serve.
Government Sponsored Programs like Medicare contributed nearly $225 million in unpaid costs for FY2005 and increased 5.3 percent from the year before. System-wide, the total of community benefit plus unpaid Medicare is more than $493 million, or 20.5 percent of NPR for FY2005; an increase of nearly 18.4 percent from FY2004.
