Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 10267
Tallahassee, FL 32302
Email:
Executive Director
Telephone:
(850) 942-2569
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Local We Care Program Saves Lives by Donating Medical Care
Uninsured, poor can get specialty care through coalition
By Jeff Burlew
DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER
Robert Brown of Wakulla County was in constant pain. But he'd been laid off from his job as a
warehouse worker and couldn't afford to see a urologist.
That's when he learned about the We Care Network, a Tallahassee-based coalition of doctors,
hospitals and other health-care providers who give free specialty care to the poor and uninsured.
Brown was admitted to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital. In June, Dr. Raleigh Rollins removed a
softball-sized tumor - the largest he'd seen - from his bladder and a cancerous mass from his
kidney. Brown credits Rollins and We Care with saving his life.
"It's the best thing that ever happened to me during this situation," said Brown, 55, who's
going back to school to become a truck driver.
The We Care Network, a program of the Capital Medical Society Foundation, is an important part
of the community's effort to help the uninsured. Since 1992, it has donated nearly $29 million
in specialty health care to needy patients in Leon, Gadsden, Jefferson and Wakulla counties. Last
year alone, it provided $3.1 million in free care. More than 300 volunteer specialists make up the
heart of the network, but the hospitals and labs also play key roles.
We Care patients often are referred by the Bond Community Health Center and Neighborhood Health
Services, which provide routine primary care to the uninsured. Voters in the Nov. 7 general
election will decide whether to greatly expand the uninsured effort by increasing the sales
tax from 7.5 percent to 8 percent. The tax would raise an estimated $18 million in its first
year for more comprehensive primary care.
So far, Brown's bills have reached about $109,000 - an amount he says he never could have covered.
Though he still could've been treated without We Care, his medical care wouldn't have been as
thorough or coordinated, said Robin McDougall, program coordinator.
If not for We Care, she said, "They'd go without some essentials like medications and diagnostics.
They would also accumulate incredible medical expenses that they could never pay off."
Dr. James Stockwell of Tallahassee founded the program after learning about a similar effort in
Gainesville. Stockwell, a member of Leon County's primary health-care committee, is an advocate
for those without health care.
"People are able to access the medical care that makes them healthier and avoid increasing sickness
and death," Stockwell said. "So on an individual-patient basis, it's saved lives. It's made people
healthier. That's the No. 1 most important thing."
The patients often have serious illnesses, from heart problems to cancer, and require a number
of specialists. Case managers help coordinate all the care. And We Care personnel also step in
to help with other issues, from a lack of transportation or child care to an abusive partner or
inability to pay utility bills.
"You find out about all these other things and you end up helping with those, too," McDougall said.
Cases to remember
To be eligible, a patient must have no health insurance and live below the federal poverty level,
which is $13,200 for a family of two or $20,000 for a family of four, McDougall said. The patient
also must need a specialty doctor, not a doctor who provides routine primary care. Patients are
referred by health-care providers treating the medically needy.
Most We Care patients have jobs but can't afford health insurance. Some have put off going to
the doctor even though they've had obvious symptoms, such as a breast lump.
"They knew they couldn't pay the bill and they just weren't willing to go," McDougall said.
"Those are the cases that stick with me."
In Leon County, the number of people younger than 65 without health insurance has been estimated
at between 18,000 and 31,000. One state study put Leon's figure at 7.7 percent of the non-elderly
population - the lowest rate in Florida.
Currently, the county has a property tax that raises about $1.4 million a year for health care
for the uninsured. Proceeds go to the two Tallahassee clinics, and $90,000 goes to We Care. If
the sales-tax initiative passes, the property tax will likely go away, but We Care will still
be in place to provide specialty care.
"I'm glad to give back any way I can," Dr. Rollins said. "We Care is a wonderful program."
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