I went to the opening of the new ICHS clinic in Crossroads yesterday. It’s exciting to have this kind of facility here – one that is focused on serving our low-income population that have signed up in droves for healthcare under the Affordable Care Act. All these newly insured people have to have somewhere to go, and this kind of facility will deliver the kind of care that works – culturally and linguistically appropriate high-quality medical care. It’s on 140th just North of NE 8th in Bellevue near Crossroads.
Teresita Batayola, the CEO was just leaving after the ceremony to receive an award from the White House for her work doing outreach about healthcare to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders here in King County. This is pretty cool.
Teresita Batayola receives “Champion of Change” White House Award
Seattle, WA – On Thursday, April 24, the White House and U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) will honor Teresita Batayola, Chief Executive Officer of International Community Health Services (ICHS), as one of 11 “Champions of Change” for her work in educating Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders about the Affordable Care Act.
“This is a wonderful recognition for Teresita and ICHS, said ICHS Board President Gildas Cheung. “We are proud of the tireless work of Teresita and ICHS staff in ensuring that our community has access to health care under the Affordable Care Act. As we open new clinics in Bellevue and Shoreline this year, we hope to touch many more lives and expand the reach of our linguistically and culturally appropriate model of care.”
The White House event celebrates the leadership, commitment, and hard work of navigators, consumer assisters, community health centers, and other individuals or organizations that have focused on ensuring that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders fully benefit from health care reform.
Since October of 2013, a team of certified “in-person assisters” at ICHS – packing in back-to-back appointments – have helped 5,800 patients complete enrollments under the Affordable Care Act by the March 31 deadline. “This represented an extraordinary effort by folks at ICHS to make sure that our community was not left behind,” Batayola said.
ICHS, first established in over 40 years ago as a free storefront clinic serving low-income residents in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District, is Washington State’s largest Asian and Pacific Islander non-profit health care provider. It serves over 19,000 patients in over 50 different languages. ICHS operates full-service medical-dental clinics at its flagship clinic in the International District and at Holly Park in Southeast Seattle. It also runs a health clinic at Seattle World School and at Asian Counseling and Referral Service, a sister social service agency in Seattle.
Late last year, ICHS launched a mobile dental clinic serving 10 Seattle middle schools and high schools. Next week, ICHS opens a 6,500 square foot clinic in the ethnically-diverse Crossroads neighborhood of Bellevue. And in August, ICHS will open a 40,000 square foot clinic in Shoreline, the first non-profit community clinic in that city’s history.
The event will include remarks by Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary for Health, and Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health, as well as panel discussions featuring the Champions.
The April 24 event is closed to press but will be live streamed on the White House website. To watch this event live, visit www.whitehouse.gov/live at 1:30 pm EDT on Thursday, April 24th.
To learn more about the White House Champions of Change program and nominate a Champion, visit www.whitehouse.gov/champions.
For more information about ICHS, please visit: www.ichs.com
