Nonprofit aims to spur health coverage through Mid-Valley location

WESLACO — The city of Weslaco is officially home to MHP Salud’s first office site in Texas, where they hope to decrease the number of uninsured residents in a region particularly in need of healthcare coverage: the Rio Grande Valley.

Now located at 512 S. Westgate Drive, Suite B in Weslaco, MHP Salud is a national nonprofit organization that focuses on improving access to health care in underserved communities through its Community Health Worker, or CHW programs.

According to Jill Spannagel, vice president of community initiatives for MHP Salud, 1 in every 3 residents are uninsured in Hidalgo County alone.

U.S. Census Bureau data also shows that 23.5% of Cameron County residents do not have health insurance.

Public officials and health experts have long-attributed aggravating factors in the area to a high poverty rate (25.42%, according to census data), while the National Institutes of Health found a 55% prevalence rate of obesity, 39% of hypertension, 32.5% of diabetes and 19% of depression in the Valley.

The region’s lack of access to healthcare services often comes into focus each time a local hospital system signals the implementation of new surgical and medical procedures that were previously unavailable in the region.

In short, the Valley struggles with health.

Spannagel says the organization is aware of this and has observed an increase in uninsured residents. She also believes this is due to several factors but pointed more prominently to the current state of the economy.

More residents who get insured in the Valley, however, can have a ripple effect.

“Medical bills and hospital bills are the primary reason why people are filing bankruptcy,” Spannagel said. “It could literally take away your savings.”

She emphasizes the importance of prioritizing one’s health, adding that the best way to do that is through health education in addition to insurance.

At MHP Salud, they help residents with application assistance through their navigator program and review the Health Insurance Marketplace and other options.

They also help with applications for government programs such as Medicaid and CHIP through their Connecting Kids to Coverage program.

“For the most part we serve underserved communities … and we really want to try to help them get focused and connected to other resources,” Spannagel said. “We do a holistic assessment on folks and try to get them to the needed resources that would help their family.”

As of now, MHP serves six different regions and 67 counties, and they hope to continue serving those areas from their Weslaco office.

According to Andrea McNally, director of communications and public relations for MHP, they established an office in Weslaco because they see a “need here for people to get more education and connect with more resources.”

Along with application assistance, MHP also has programs such as the Parents as Teachers program that focuses on teaching parents about child development, providing parenting support and community resource referrals.

Other programs include its Nutrition Assistance Program Education where they promote healthy weight among families by helping participants improve their diet and exercise.

Weslaco Mayor Adrian Gonzalez expressed gratitude for MHP Salud’s efforts to help Valley communities during a ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday celebrating its opening in the city.

“I just want to congratulate you guys … all the staff on all the hard work that you do and for dedicating this to help our community and the surrounding communities,” Gonzalez said.

For information on how to apply for these services, contact MHP Salud at (956) 968-3600, via email at [email protected], or by visiting the Weslaco location.