Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation
Annual Report Fiscal Year 2013–2014
13
Nonprofit Excellence
clinic. One very important message
free clinics need to convey: Health
care reform under the Affordable Care
Act (ACA) does not mean that there no
longer are uninsured people. Donda
says health care navigators came to the
clinic last year during open enrollment.
Many patients were eager to see if they
could buy insurance—and left in tears.
Though 70 percent of the clinic’s patients
are employed, most could not afford
insurance, even with subsidies. Like many
patients across the state, they would have
been covered by Medicaid expansion.
Donda is optimistic about the clinic’s
future and its ability to provide for
patients. She feels confident that the
clinic will be on stronger financial footing
in the next few years, thanks to the
guidance provided by Pathways.
All seven clinics in the Pathways
cohort faced unique challenges, says
Pathways program director Kim McGuire.
Leaders of these organizations are
passionate about their work. But, like
Donda, they often don’t have time to work
on the infrastructure and processes they
need to be successful. “We want to move
them beyond crisis mode to being secure
and having an impact,” Kim says.
With reduced charitable donations
and the mistaken notion that the ACA
eliminates the need for free clinics, it is
critical that these organizations provide
clarity about the continued need for their
services in the community.
To tackle these challenges, Pathways
met with clinic staff leaders and board
members to help them better understand
and prepare for the shifting tide of
ongoing health care reform and other
emerging issues. From there, they worked
with the clinics to determine what they
needed to prepare for a sound future,
especially related to business models
and sustainability.
Pathways paired the clinics with
consultants who worked with them
shoulder to shoulder over a period of
months to address their specific needs.
“What we know is that cookie cutter
doesn’t work,” Kim says.
To learn more about
WNC Nonprofit Pathways,
please visit
Tailored, in-depth
organizational assistance is
what really creates change
over time. It’s nitty-gritty
hard work.
Western North Carolina Nonprofit Pathways
program director
Kim McGuire
NONPROF I TS
REPORTED
AN
INCREASE
IN DEMAND FOR
SERVICES IN 2013,
THE
6
TH
STRAIGHT YEAR
OF INCREASES
80
%
OF
10
