Coronavirus: CommUnityCare Health Launches Phone Appointments

AUSTIN, TX — In light of the new coronavirus outbreak, Central Health-funded CommUnityCare Health Centers is offering patients medical appointments without leaving the safety of their home, officials announced on Monday.

“The best thing for people to do right now is to stay at home,” CommUnityCare Chief Medical Officer Dr. Alan Schalscha said in a prepared statement. “By caring for patients over the phone, we can limit potential COVID-19 exposure for patients, staff, and our community – and ultimately help slow the spread of this disease. We know that medical appointments are incredibly important, and we want to provide them in the safest, most appropriate way possible.”

To that end, CommUnityCare staff are calling and texting patients that already have scheduled appointments to determine whether or not they can occur by phone. Patients who have not heard from CommUnityCare about their scheduled appointment or are wanting to make an appointment should call (512) 978-9015.

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Eligible appointments include chronic disease management for people with conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure, and many acute conditions that don’t require lab work. Medication refills that don’t require a doctor’s approval can also be completed over the phone.

The shift to telemedicine visits and decreasing in-person appointments will also help with the priority of conserving Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which is in limited supply across the country. CommUnityCare staff is screening every patient and visitor for symptoms of COVID-19 before entering a facility, which includes a temperature reading. This requires that the employee has PPE.

Related stories: Central Health Alters Operations Due To COVID-19

“Telemedicine enables us to follow the social distancing recommendations by Austin Public Health,” Dr. Karen Welch, director of primary care CommUnityCare, said in a prepared statement. “We are also moving quickly to offer video appointments with CommUnityCare providers. We hope by the end of this week, up to 50 percent of our appointments will be by phone instead of in-person.”

CommUnityCare has about 120,000 patients annually. Many are uninsured, underinsured or members of Central Health’s Medical Access Program (MAP). For a list of CommUnityCare clinics and hours of operation, visit CommUnityCareTX.org or call 512-978-9015.

In related news, in-person interviews for Central Health's Medical Access Program (MAP) have been suspended in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, all interviews started to be conducted by telephone starting on March 23. The phone number is (512) 978-8130.

"We're making these changes to protect the health and safety our our clients and staff," Central Health Senior Director of Eligibility Services Kit Abney Spelce said. "Suspending in-person interviews will reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19. We will continue to enroll Travis County residents who qualify for MAP with as little interruption as possible."

If someone comes to a Central Health Eligibility office seeking MAP enrollment, staff will safely provide a paper application to complete off-site and submit as described below. MAP applications may also provide a paper application to complete off-site and submit as described below. MAP applications can be downloaded from www.centralhealth.net/covid19 in English and Spanish, completed and submitted to Central Health in the following ways:

• Mail: Medical Access Program, P.O. Box 300489, Austin, TX 78703
• Fax: (512) 776-0457
• Email: mapdocs@centralhealth.net

Individuals experiencing homelessness will still be seen at the eligibility office at Central Health Southeast Health & Wellness Center, 2901 Montopolis Dr. Note: Although Central Health uses a secure, HIPAA-compliant email system, applications and documents sent through the client's own email may not be secure.