Nonprofit Partner Spotlight:
MCPN Extends Safety Net to the Medically Underserved

The numbers are sobering. With a growing uninsured population that now approaches 800,000 in Colorado, the overwhelming needs of the state’s medically underserved population are enough to concern even the most seasoned medical professionals. Fortunately, the people who run the Metro Community Provider Network (MCPN) are actively working on it.

MCPN is a nonprofit network of community health centers that serves the largest population base of any community health center in Colorado, and the largest number of underserved individuals in the state.  In fact, one out of four Coloradoans lives in the MCPN service area.  At its 16 sites in Jefferson, Arapahoe, Adams and Park Counties, an area that includes the cities of Lakewood and Aurora, the Metro Community Provider Network sees 38,000 people annually in 300,000 office visits. 

“We are their healthcare safety net,” says John Reid, vice president of fund development for MCPN. “Health insurance rates keep going up and emergency rooms keep getting more crowded. It’s not hard to see that we are filling a huge need.” 

MCPN has a huge need as well. As a Federally Qualified Health Center, it gets some of its funding from Federal and State agencies. Additional revenue comes from billable insurance and patient fees. But with 80 percent of its patients at or below the poverty level, the need to generate new revenue streams is constant. That’s where Community First Foundation comes in.

The Foundation offered MCPN the tools to build an endowment fund by providing the know-how and a challenge grant to raise $200,000 in one year. With help and guidance from the Foundation, MCPN now has more than $900,000 in their endowment and a goal to reach $1 million by the end of 2007. Reid says building an endowment creates an opportunity for a community-based nonprofit to be less reliant on government funding — revenue sources that are traditionally vulnerable to year-to-year funding cuts. Like taking the lid off a pressure cooker, it relieves the fund-raising tension and allows MCPN to continue doing what it does best: deliver quality healthcare to the medically underserved.

“Community First Foundation showed us how to create a long-term, sustainable funding source,” said Reid. “If you don’t have any savings, an emergency can quickly become a disaster. Creating an endowment nest egg that will not diminish over time is like buying an insurance policy for the future of our organization. The concept is brilliant.”

Founded in 1989, the Metro Community Provider Network provides access to healthcare for low income and uninsured patients. No one is turned away, including the homeless. In addition to treating patients who need medical care, the clinics also offer case management, outreach and health education programs that stress prevention and reducing risk. Classes include smoking cessation, diabetes and asthma management, and family planning, as well as programs to help pregnant and parenting teens provide their children with a healthy start in life. The network also organizes support groups, walking clubs, health fairs and wellness programs. 

“I didn’t understand the concept of community health until I was laid off some years ago,” says Reid. “Now I know that it means providing the healthcare you need when you need it with no questions asked, regardless of whether or not you can afford it.”