2024 Annual Report
Measuring the Impact of Reaching the Uninsured
When people have comprehensive health coverage, they are more likely to stay healthy. That’s a simple fact—but keeping people covered is no easy feat, especially when regulatory or legislative changes make it harder.
That’s why Community Service Society of New York (CSS) partnered with the Health Foundation for Western & Central New York to create a network of community-based organizations (CBOs) to design and implement outreach strategies to effectively reach the uninsured in their regions.
The ”Reaching the Five Percent (R5)” program, based on a report of the same name published by the Health Foundation in 2019, focused on uninsured individuals in 16 counties of central and western New York who were eligible for affordable health coverage but had not yet enrolled. Between 2021 and 2023, state-funded CBOs in the network leveraged connections and trust with people in their areas to successfully connect individuals to local enrollers.
The program, which was meant to complement a broadly targeted marketing campaign by the New York State of Health Marketplace, allowed participating CBOs flexibility in their approach to reaching potential clients not typically permitted under New York State Navigator and enrollment program grants. The R5 outreach effort use targeted messages that were specifically designed to reach groups that have been historically marginalized, such as lower-income individuals, young people, and people of color.
In 2024, CSS released a report on the program’s impact, How to Maximize Health Insurance Enrollment: Funding Local Marketing and Outreach Innovations by Community-Based Enrollment Agencies. CSS analyzed outcomes from the pilot and the strategies deployed under the R5 model for application in other parts of the state.
The report discussed the following findings:
- Local marketing and outreach efforts engaged New Yorkers nine million times;
- More than 7,000 consumers were enrolled in health insurance coverage under the initiative;
- The strategy generated $9.73 in health care savings for every $1 dollar invested, a 973 percent return on investment.
“Through the partnership with CSS on the Reaching the 5% project, Healthy Community Alliance was able to conduct the outreach and education necessary to identify uninsured and underinsured consumers who otherwise would not have the support needed to enroll in affordable health insurance,” said Ann Battaglia, Chief Executive Officer, Healthy Community Alliance, Inc., a participating R5 community based organization. “The funding allowed us the opportunity to try new and creative outreach methods to reach people in ways that are most convenient for them. We are proud to have been part of this project which helped close the gap in the uninsured in New York State.”
Helping Create an Informed Electorate
The stakes of the 2024 presidential election were high in a number of ways—but perhaps no issue was more consequential than health care. As part of our commitment to advocating for greater health access and equity, the Health Foundation partnered with the League of Women Voters – Buffalo Niagara to bring a webinar to the public in October 2024 that outlined how each presidential candidate would approach health care—and what the impact of our votes could be.
The panel featured María Alvarez, Executive Director, New York StateWide Senior Action Council; Mark Hannay, Executive Director, Metro New York Health Care for All; and Danise Wilson, Executive Director, Reproductive Health Access Project, with moderator Ryan Zunner, Reporter, WBFO.
Advocacy Resources at Your Fingertips
The Health Foundation remains committed to advocating for regulatory and policy change that can help more people gain health coverage and live healthier lives. Visit our Advocacy Hub on hfwcny.org to read more about our priority issues and download fact sheets about public health in our region.
