“Wouldn’t it be nice if we didn’t have to jump through a bunch of hoops to get medical care?” The Asclepius Initiative’s founder and CEO, Dr. Susan Bornstein, asked.
In a state where more than 300,000 individuals under the age of 65 remain uninsured, and an additional 240,000 are at risk of losing their Medicaid coverage, The Asclepius Initiative (TAI) steps up to address the challenges that have plagued Kentucky’s healthcare landscape. TAI conducted a survey recently revealing that 86% of the uninsured and 64% of those with insurance have been forced to avoid, skip, or discontinue vital medical care and medications due to financial constraints.
“Even for those who have commercial coverage or supplements, the rules, regulations, and terminology can be confusing or incomprehensible, so we wanted to help. Better understanding can translate into more confident choices and utilization, leading to better outcomes,” Bornstein said.
TAI secured a grant from the Kentucky Department of Public Health’s Office of Health Equity which focuses on empowering Black, Spanish-speaking, and rural communities, and allows collaboration with eight dedicated partners throughout Kentucky. The grant started July 1, 2023, and runs through May 31, 2024.
Through its work with community partners, TAI, founded in 2021, is making health care coverage more understandable for Kentuckians, reducing the odds that anyone has to forgo necessary medical care. Their mission is to improve the health and economic stability of Kentuckians through educating, inspiring, and mobilizing people to advocate for a universally accessible, affordable, equitable, and high-quality healthcare delivery system.
