CHC Helpline

Leslie Bachurski, CHC’s Director of Consumer Navigation, helps individuals and families navigate our complex health and human services system. If you know someone who is uninsured and needs assistance in applying for public health programs (such as Medical Assistance or the Children’s Health Insurance Program – CHIP), please have them call the CHC Helpline. The phone number is 412-456-1877 and our services are free.

Get help via e-mail, or use your favorite email client to send an email with the title “Get Help Now!” to:

Apply for Free or Low Cost Health Insurance for your Kids Online

Renew Your Medical Assistance Benefits Online

Apply for Medical Assistance Benefits Online Through COMPASS

100% Pledge Organizations

CHC works to connect at-risk individuals and families to health resources through the help of our community partners. We call this our 100% Pledge. Community organizations “pledge” to ask their clients if they have health insurance coverage. If not, the organizations can refer the individual or family to CHC’s helpline. We’ll work to connect them with the health coverage and care that they need. 100% Pledge Organizations can also request trainings from CHC to learn about health coverage options for underserved populations and CHC’s free helpline services.
To become a 100% Pledge Organization and to schedule a training, please click HERE. (Send to lbachurski@consumerhealthcoalition.org with the title “Schedule Training”).

100% Pledge Desk Reference

CHC’s 100% Pledge Desk Reference includes information on free and low-cost health centers; free health services for individuals who are uninsured and need specific services; and information on CHIP, Medical Assistance, Medical Assistance for Workers with Disabilities, and the adultBasic program. The desk reference also includes valuable phone numbers and ways to refer uninsured individuals and families to CHC for assistance. If you would like to request a copy for your organization please call Leslie Bachurski at 412-456-1877 x200 or click HERE. (Send to lbachurski@consumerhealthcoalition.org with the title “Request 100% Pledge Desk Reference”).

Latino Outreach

The Latino population represents one of the fastest growing populations in Allegheny County. According to the US Census Bureau more than 15,000 Hispanic individuals lived in Allegheny County in 2007, representing a 32 percent increase since 2000. Many Latino people face language and cultural barriers that jeopardize their ability to enroll their children in publicly-funding health coverage. Recognizing this need, CHC visits the Birmingham Free Clinic (Salud Para Niños) monthly to help to complete health insurance applications on-site. The clinic is held one Saturday per month from 10 AM until 12:30 PM. More information on the Birmingham Free Clinic (Salud Para Niños).

Issue Brief:

Tracking Barriers to Health Care: Issues Affecting Individuals with Limited English Proficiency

This report identifies and documents barriers barriers to health care experienced by Limited English Proficiency consumers.

The evidence documented represents times when clients, or advocates working along with clients, faced clear barriers in client care, which triggered the need for assistance. In many cases, clients’ civil rights were violated (i.e. lack of informed consent and lack of interpretation services.) Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, all health care providers who receive federal funding must provide meaningful access to their programs for persons with limited English proficiency.

This report is meant to serve as a public education tool and for use in advocacy efforts to address and eliminate barriers and to promote positive change.

Consumer Health Coalition receives CHIPRA funding to get more kids covered!

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced $40 million in grants to 69 grantees in 41 states and the District of Columbia to help them find and enroll children who are uninsured but eligible for either Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

As part of today’s grant release, $299,750 will go to the Consumer Health Coalition (CHC). CHC will partner with the Birth Circle and the Squirrel Hill Health Center to identify and help enroll uninsured children in Pennsylvania’s Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and Medicaid. “The Consumer Health Coalition has a long history of assisting parents’ with accessing insurance coverage for their children. This award strengthens our ability to reach more families, especially those in rural areas,” said Beth Heeb, Executive Director of CHC…read more

Leslie Bachurski, CHC’s Director of Consumer Navigation, helps individuals and families navigate our complex health and human services system. If you know someone who is uninsured and needs assistance in applying for public health programs (such as Medical Assistance or the Children’s Health Insurance Program – CHIP), please have them call the CHC helpline. The phone number is 412-456-1877 and our services are free.