JaxCareConnect

Creating a Primary Health Care Safety Net System for Duval County

Vision

Every resident of Duval County has access to high-quality, comprehensive healthcare – regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.

JaxCareConnect is an innovative initiative of the Duval Safety Net Collaborative designed to connect uninsured neighbors more efficiently to available health care options. The Collaborative currently includes six free and charitable clinics (Agape Community Health Center, Community Health Outreach, Muslim American Social Services Clinic, Mission House, Sulzbacher, and Volunteers in Medicine). We Care Jacksonville, Inc. is serving as comprehensive fiscal agent for the project. These nonprofits have worked together as referral partners over the last two decades.

In recent years, the need has arisen to strengthen and formalize the partnership to include a universal eligibility application and intake system, navigation of public healthcare options, and individual case management for neighbors in need of access to healthcare. Rather than duplicating efforts at each partner site, this project will leverage shared resources for true collective impact.

Photo Credit: Bob Self, The Florida Times-Union

A Project of the Duval Safety Net Collaborative

Doing Greater Good. Together.

“We have a long road ahead of us to ensure all our uninsured neighbors have a viable option for health care within reach… It is only when every neighbor has the chance to reach their full health potential without barriers that we can begin to see that Jacksonville values all people … equally. This is a cornerstone of a healthy community.”

– Angela Strain, WeCareJax Executive Director

One of the primary goals of JaxCareConnect is connecting a minimum of 2,000 uninsured neighbors to a primary care medical home over the initial pilot project period. Without a trusted medical home, often uninsured patients are seen in hospital emergency rooms for conditions best served in primary care. This episodic care puts unnecessary strain on emergency departments, is costly to patients and to taxpayers and yields inconsistent healthcare outcomes. In some cases, individuals forego seeking medical care altogether due to a lack of awareness of services they might be eligible for, which can lead to higher acuity and worse outcomes the longer care is delayed. Sustainable solutions and support for better health outcomes for all neighbors in our community is a step towards true health equity.

JaxCareConnect will support an efficient, streamlined, and systematic way to link uninsured persons to high-quality healthcare in a primary care medical home. The project’s team of Patient Health Advocates will work individually with each patient to guide them through the eligibility process, examine and help overcome barriers to achieving optimal health, aid with public health applications they may qualify for, and provide ongoing support along their healthcare journey. Over the course of the pilot project, the team will also develop “always on” web-based tools that allow for the eligibility screening process to begin whenever a prospective patient needs it most.

Through outreach, community education, and evolving partnerships across the full continuum of care, JaxCareConnect aims to better inform individuals about their healthcare options so that all Duval County residents have access to comprehensive primary care – regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.

Want to join the JaxCareConnect team? Click here to apply.

Learn More

JaxCareConnect Featured! Listen to the New Episode of “What’s Health Got to do With It?”

JaxCareConnect, our partner organization, has been highlighted and interviewed on the latest episode of the podcast “What’s Health Got to do With It?” hosted by Dr. Joe Sirven. Jenny O’Donnell, JaxCareConnect Project Administrator, shares more about what JaxCareConnect is, who funds JaxCareConnect, how JaxCareConnect helps their patients, how they coordinate to get patients care with […]

Patient Story: Maria

In early 2022, Maria (name changed for patient confidentiality) was facing a stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma diagnosis – with no way to access or afford health insurance. After having a double mastectomy as an uninsured patient, Maria thankfully found our primary care partner, MASS Clinic, through JaxCareConnect. MASS Clinic sent an oncology referral to […]

Website launched to connect Jacksonville’s uninsured to health care: ‘This … could not have come at a better time’

Article by Beth Reese Cravey, The Florida Times-Union JaxCareConnect, a new initiative developed to connect uninsured Jacksonville residents to primary care, has launched a website to build those connections online. The site — jaxcareconnect.org — will use patients’ health care needs and location to match them to primary care providers in a network of free and low-cost health centers. “We have […]

For more information, please contact:

 Jenny O’Donnell, JaxCareConnect Administrator

jodonnell@jaxcareconnect.org / 904-674-6454