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October 2003, Vol 93, No. 10 | American Journal of Public Health 1634-1636
© 2003 American Public Health Association

FIELD ACTION REPORT

Tribal Benefits Counseling Program: Expanding Health Care Opportunities for Tribal Members

Donna Friedsam, MPH, Gretchen Haug, Mike Rust, MDiv and Amy Lake, MS

Donna Friedsam and Amy Lake are with the University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison. Gretchen Haug is with the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council, Lac Du Flambeau, Wis. Mike Rust is with Advocacy and Benefits Counseling for Health, Balsam Lake, Wis.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Donna Friedsam, MPH, Wisconsin Public Health and Health Policy Institute, 760 WARF Bldg, 610 Walnut St, Madison, WI 53726 (e-mail: dafriedsam{at}facstaff.wisc.edu).

American Indian tribal clinics hired benefits counselors to increase the number of patients with public and private insurance coverage, expand the range of health care options available to tribal members, and increase third-party revenues for tribal clinics. Benefits counselors received intensive training, technical assistance, and evaluation over a 2-year period.

Six tribal clinics participated in the full training program, including follow-up, process evaluation, and outcomes reporting. Participating tribal sites experienced a 78% increase in Medicaid enrollment among pregnant women and children, compared with a 26% enrollment increase statewide during the same period.

Trained benefits counselors on-site at tribal clinics can substantially increase third-party insurance coverage among patients.






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