Wellpoint-TORCH Partnership Generates $1 Million in Rural Texas Clinic Improvements

Wellpoint Texas is committed to a holistic approach to health for our members and the communities we serve. For years, we’ve helped address a range of rural health challenges — including widespread hospital and clinic closures, insufficient funding, shrinking caseloads, and the often vast distances between patients and providers.

Such challenges spurred a partnership between Wellpoint and the Texas Organization of Rural & Community Hospitals (TORCH). Through TORCH, we provided $500,000 in grant funding to 22 rural health clinics across the state, and providers leveraged it to implement more than $1 million in needed improvements.

“The challenges rural providers face underscore the importance of meaningful partnerships, and our longstanding relationship with TORCH has been an especially effective one,” said Wellpoint Texas President Greg Thompson. “Texans living and working in rural communities deserve the best possible care. We work to achieve that by empowering local clinics with critical investments that help them thrive.”

Two summers ago, Wellpoint and TORCH launched the Texas Rural Health Capacity Building Grant, which helps fund needs such as infrastructure and telehealth services. Developed in collaboration with the TORCH Foundation and the Texas Association of Rural Health Clinics (TARHC), the program is helping providers upgrade and renovate facilities, purchase essential equipment, recruit and train staff, and address nonmedical health drivers.

“This program shows how organizations with an aligned mission and purpose can work together to elevate rural health in material ways,” said Wellpoint Network Management Director Marcella Webb. “These collaboratives meet immediate needs in communities across the state and build momentum for future funding opportunities.”

Here are just a few notable improvements that the grants helped fund:

·       The Houston County Family Medical Clinic in East Texas used the grants to purchase equipment that’s allowing the facility to provide more gynecologic examinations. This also supports a clinic collaboration that brings Texas A&M University nursing students to Houston County to complete well-woman exams and cancer screenings for uninsured patients. The clinic also bought needed COVID-related equipment.

·       Park Clinic in the Panhandle used the money for a substantial renovation and expansion that created a smooth, safe entrance into the facility. This necessary project dramatically improved access to the clinic and addressed ADA and Life Safety Code issues.

·       Rice Medical Associates southwest of Houston bought three ultrasound devices with the funding, helping providers identify potential problems or complications that couldn’t be detected otherwise. The money also helped pay for new exam tables to replace older, inadequate equipment.

·       Huntsville Memorial Hospital leveraged the funds to implement tele-psychiatric services that the clinic previously had not been able to offer. It also supported a significant expansion, adding four exam rooms, and enabled leaders to recruit a nurse midwife to serve obstetric patients.

TORCH Foundation CEO Quang Ngo said that for many recipients, the funding was vital and transformative.

“The struggle has always been, how do you aspire to do more when you’re always struggling to meet the immediate day-to-day needs,” Ngo said. “Hospitals and clinics don’t have the sufficient staffing, funding, or infrastructure to support the community's needs.”

Collaboration, he added, is key. Wellpoint is grateful to work with partners such as TORCH to ensure Texans receive the quality healthcare they deserve.

“We’re all in the same storm,” said Ngo. “The goals should be the same: to provide access to good, quality care not only for our direct communities but also for anyone who may travel to and from these communities.”