Access Now . . . Our community's approach to a national problem Access Now is a community partnership to improve access to specialty health care for low-income, uninsured residents of the Richmond, Virginia metropolitan area. It combines care provided in primary care safety net clinics (Free Clinics, FQHC & LHD) with donated specialty care in a coordinated referral program led by the Richmond Academy of Medicine. It was created to enhance the work of existing safety net clinics and other community agencies. Access Now is a community partnership to improve access to specialty health care for low-income, uninsured residents of the Richmond, Virginia metropolitan area. It combines care provided in primary care safety net clinics (Free Clinics, FQHC & LHD) with donated specialty care in a coordinated referral program led by the Richmond Academy of Medicine. It was created to enhance the work of existing safety net clinics and other community agencies. Access Now is among the key recommendations of the Community Health Services Plan Steering Committee, composed of regional and state health experts, facilitated by REACH. A comprehensive program of coordinated care In the Richmond area there are an estimated 57,000 people who are uninsured and have incomes at or below 200% of the federal poverty level. When lack of insurance causes delays or prohibits access to care, patients develop more serious conditions. Those without access to health care are less likely to receive preventive care and more likely to be hospitalized for conditions that could have been avoided with early treatment. Community support of a program that expands access to care for the uninsured pays off. According to a CDC-sponsored analysis, one dollar of services provided saves three dollars of hospital costs. Three years after a Project Access program was started in Buncombe County, NC, self reported use of emergency departments among low-income uninsured patients in the program fell from 28% to 8%. Access Now can help reduce the burden of uncompensated care on physicians and hospitals by increasing access to care for the uninsured. Access Now is not the answer to the problem of the uninsured, rather it is one part of the comprehensive approach required by a problem of such size and scope. Access Now Brochure Physician & Group Participation Form Access Now Clinic Manual Health Insurance Claim Form Access Now Physicians' Office Handbook