01/28/21

Grants provided by MHS as part of Provider Accessibility Initiative

INDIANAPOLIS – (January 28, 2021) – MHS, in partnership with the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), has awarded 12 healthcare providers across Indiana with grants to make their facilities more accessible to people with disabilities. The awardees applied for grants which are part of the health plan’s Provider Accessibility Initiative (PAI), with the full list of grantees including:

• Porter Starke Services DBA Marram Health Center
• Eric A Yancy, M.D.
• Forniss Optometric P.C.
• Walker Medical Group
• HealthLinc, Inc.
• Open Door Health Services
• Edgewater Health
• Tulip Tree Health Services of Gibson County
• Montgomery Medical Associates LLC
• Southern Indiana Community Health Care
• Community HealthNet Health Centers
• Goshen Family Physicians

The goal of the PAI is to increase the number of practitioner locations that meet minimum federal and state disability access standards. Providers in the MHS network selected to receive grant funds submitted applications to NCIL, explaining their need for more accessible facilities. MHS selected recipients based on the impact of the improvements on its disability access network adequacy, as well as the number of MHS members with disabilities impacted.

In the application process, providers proposed a list of potential improvements for each of their facilities. Upgrades like doorway and restroom modifications, more accessible exam tables and procedure chairs, and braille signage are just some of the improvement additions intended to be made with the additional funds. Some providers submitted multiple applications for several of their facility locations to make improvements.

“We are very excited to receive this funding. We will be able to serve a much larger segment of our community with dignity. I don’t want any patient, particularly kids, to feel like their care is an extra burden to staff or family. Everyone’s experience when going to the doctor should feel comfortable. A wheelchair should be able to enter a room easily. A transport chair should be able to go up a ramp easily. More importantly, a patient, should not even notice their experience is different than any other patient. I am proud to play a part in maintaining the dignity of others,” said Dr. Roland Walker, M.D. of Walker Medical Group.

For more information about the grants and the provider accessibility initiative, visit: www.ncil.org/provider-accessibility-initiative/