NEPA Vital Signs - Winter 2019 Spring 2020 - 10

L ACKMEDSOC.ORG

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LUZERNEMEDSOC.ORG

Feature

ALL IN THE NUMBERS

ACCURATE COUNT CRITICAL FOR LOCAL RESOURCES

C

ount on 2020 being a year with big implications
for healthcare in Northeastern Pennsylvania
and the nation.

The U.S. Census - that once-a-decade
tally of people and households across the
country - will be conducted in the spring,
ultimately determining how congressional
seats will be allocated among the states and
where some $675 billion per year in federal
funds will be spent. If a city or region is
undercounted, it potentially can lose political power as well as financial resources for
much-needed services including schools,
roads, child care and health clinics.
In the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton metro
area, an effort is under way to encourage

full participation in the count, highlighting how the Census influences healthcare
funding in our local communities, and
affects vulnerable populations including
minorities, people living in poverty and
preschool-age children. The government
uses population data when making decisions about services such as the Medical
Assistance Program (Medicaid), the State
Children's Health Insurance Program
(S-CHIP) and even foster care. An accurate
count of the population is vital to ensuring
the government can properly determine
where assistance is needed.
N E PA

10

VITAL SIGNS

The Wright Center for Community
Health is among several area providers
of safety-net healthcare services for
whom the upcoming Census results
will be particularly consequential. The
organization operates seven primary care
locations, as well as school-based health
centers in Lackawanna and Luzerne
counties. Its team of providers also
rotates through several area hospitals,
serving nearly 20,000 patients each year.
Many of those individuals are underinsured or uninsured.
Jignesh Sheth, MD, MPH, chief medical
officer at The Wright Center for Community Health, is a primary care provider in
tune with his individual patients' needs as
well as overall, regional population health

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NEPA Vital Signs - Winter 2019 Spring 2020

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