Grande Ronde Hospital | FY2019 | Community Benefit Report

2 program here—there is no reason our patients should struggle to pay their bill given all the options and programs available here,” says Carrie. When compared to other health care systems, even larger health systems, Carrie says the GRH financial assis- tance program has more options for people faced with paying medical bills. Counselors work with patients from a solutions-oriented position. Their proactive approach has produced good results in two years. “Nobody wants to owe us money. What we have found out is that most people who owe money for their care are relieved to hear about the options we offer to help them pay it off,” Carrie says. Options include helping people determine if they qualify for the Oregon Health Plan or some other type of insurance, working out a payment plan, and applying for GRH financial assistance. The application process has specific requirements and supporting documents are necessary to determine qualification, but each counselor is trained and experienced in helping people gather the necessary information and complete the application. “People still do not realize that our leadership has set aside funding specifically for those who really need it. Under the financial assistance program, we can offer anywhere from a 10% to 100% discount off those bills depending on their financial status. Most think they will not qualify, but even if they only qualify for 10% or a reduced payment plan—that’s a first step in getting a plan together and working with them. We don’t want to be bill collectors— we want to help,” Carrie explains. Taking care of one another Benson Orrekum came to La Grande from Palau to attend college. Within a few years, he had decided to stay and others from his family joined him. One of those was his mother. It was her medical bills that drove Benson to seek assistance for her. “I am only telling my experience, but I am an advocate for this hospital. Help like this program builds trust and the feeling of belonging to a community. I believe we are only as strong as the community we belong to. We have to take care of each other,” Benson says. The financial help he was able to get his mother was a “huge financial relief,” and he has tried whenever possible to pass that help on by paying it forward. Benson thinks there are three reasons people do not apply: they don’t have enough informa- tion, they assume the application process is too complicated or they think they can handle it on their own. He hopes his message that financial help is available to all GRH patients—whether it ends up being a little or a lot—will get to those who need to hear it most. And they will decide to trust their financial care to the same people they trust with their health care and take advantage of all the opportunities available. Those opportunities are enhanced by a thriving, local collaboration for improving the business and financial services piece of patient care. It includes state, local and private agencies. Jorge Martinez is the Regional Outreach Coordinator for the Oregon Health Authority. He travels from Salem once a month to GRH to meet with our counselors and other members of the community in a collaborative effort to put patient financial care options at the center of their efforts. “This group exemplifies what working together can do to resolve issues. I travel all over the Northeast Oregon region, and this group is unique. They set the standard for how every resource collaboration should work,” he says. GRH has always been a health care industry leader, and —Continued from the cover GRH has been able to build a financial assistance program that ensures our patients receive care regardless of ability to pay.