Where can I find government grants to help pay health care costs for a
low income family with no health insurance. I am not interested in
being pointed to websites that are selling government grant
information, I am looking for the agency that performs the grants
itself.

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Request for Question Clarification by mwalcoff-ga on 13 Nov 2002 12:25 PST

A couple of questions:

-- Are you looking for help for the family, or help for an
organization that in turn helps families?

-- What city and state are you in?

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Clarification of Question by ericohenry-ga on 13 Nov 2002 18:21 PST

I am looking for help paying for surgery I had this year, that I have
already paid for, and I need to have tests run for a pre-cancer
condition, the tests are around $2000.00 and could be more if biopsy
and other tests are run.
When I lost my job I lost my health insurance, and when I got to the
point where I could afford health ins, I was declined due to previous
conditions. My family consists of myself and my wife. We live in
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA

Hello,

Sorry to hear about your illness. It so happens that I am working on a
project dealing with federal healthcare programs as we speak, so I
have a lot of the info handy.

There are government programs to help uninsured people pay for medical
costs. However, the money does not go to the patient; the money goes
from the government to the hospital or physician.

In California, the programs to help low-income people pay for medical
costs are Medi-Cal and Medical Services for Indigents. These programs
are administered through county social and health services offices.

The first people you should talk to are at the Orange County Health
Consumer Action Center (a federally subsidized legal-services agency)
at (800) 834-5001 (1). They can tell you which programs you may be
eligible for.

The Orange County department that handles Medi-Cal (the California
Medicaid program) is the Social Services Agency. Their Laguna Hills
Medi-Cal office is at 25292 McIntyre Road, Suites K&S, (949) 587-8543.
Or call the central office at (714) 541-7700. (2)

The Orange County Health Care Agency handles the MSI program. The
agency has health centers in San Juan Capistrano and Laguna Beach. The
San Juan Capistrano center is at 33081 Calle Perfecto, Suite A, (949)
240-2272. The Laguna Beach center is at the Laguna Beach Community
Clinic, 362 Third St., (949) 494-0761. You can also call the MSI
Eligibility Information Line at (714) 480-6333. (3)

I hope this answer meets your needs. If not, please request
clarification.

References

(1) OC HCAC, "Working People Can Get Help with Health Care"
http://www.healthconsumer.org/fs003OReng.pdf

(2) OC SSA, "Office Locations"
http://www.oc.ca.gov/ssa/location.htm

(3) OC HCA, "Locations"
http://www.ochealthinfo.com/medical/msi_broch_locat.htm

Search strategy:

California Medicaid
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=California+Medicaid

Medi-Cal Orange County
://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&q=Medi%2DCal+Orange+County

Nice job, Thanks for the help.....

The Medicaid program is the most wide-spread source of health care for
low-income families.  It is jointly funded by the U.S. federal
government and each state government, and currently provides
assistance for 36 million individuals.  The federal agency responsible
for this program is the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.  Their toll-free number is
888-267-2323.  To find out your state contact, go to the following Web
site and find your state: http://medicaid.aphsa.org/members.htm

To find the toll-free number of your state Medicaid agency, go to:
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/medicaid/tollfree.asp

You should be able to locate your state's Medicaid agency by looking
in your phone book.  In my state, it's in the separate state agency
listings under Health and Social Services, Medical Assistance,
Medicaid.

Hope this is helpful information.