2022 HEALTH CARE EDITION
20%
Uninsured rates declining
Census Bureau reported that unin- sured populations in Montgomery and Willis have been decreasing since 2018. The decreasing underinsured populations mean Montgomery’s assessment as a federal grant recipi- ent is complicated, Harwell said. “We certainly still could open [in Montgomery], but it’s harder to jus- tify,” she said. “The spread in incomes mean you could have a [wealthy] rancher across from a trailer park, so it’s not clearly a target for funding.” Reid, meanwhile, said the cham- ber’s new economic development team would hold preliminary discus- sions through June on bringing health care to the Montgomery area. “Montgomery Area Chamber has been keenly aware of the shifts in our community due to the impres- sive growth and proposed residen- tial developments over the next few years,” Reid said. “This will not only bring primary employment options, but will also provide necessary health care services to our residents.” Although HCA did not provide spe- ci cs, Sapina said it was looking into “opportunities” to expand in west Montgomery County. He said its new air transportation base in Livingston is an example of a facility that could improve service in outlying areas. “The most important thing that we can do is maintain close relationships with the local communities that we serve to ensure that we are responsive to community needs and can truly leverage the scale of HCA Healthcare more broadly when o ering new ser- vices for Conroe and the surrounding communities,” Sapina said.
15%
Although providers said there is a need for greater health care access, Lone Star Family Health Center said declining rates of uninsured residents complicate grant funding to help expand to communities like Willis and Montgomery. Data shown are 5-year estimates, which includes data from the previous four years. 77356 77318 77316
10%
Willis ZIP 77318 saw the smallest change in percent uninsured from 2014 to 2020.
5%
0
SOURCE: U.S. CENSUS BUREAU COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
demand we can’t meet in the midst of that development. We kind of run away from development, if you will, but we’ve experienced that even a booming community’s workforce relies on us.” Accessing secondary care According to Harwell, Lone Star— and other smaller clinics—tend to focus on providing primary care for the communities they cover. But for many clinics, anything beyond o ce visits and basic practices are referred out. Harwell said Lone Star is an exception, as it usually has experi- enced physician residents to perform mid-level care. “We can do a lot in house, but we are not all specialties, so we are often referring out,” Harwell said. Referring out means the clinic usu- ally lacks the ability to control what the specialist will bill the patient, Har- well said. Some trends in primary screening can be indicators of increasing chronic diseases that require repeated or sec- ondary care. Bettina Beech, the Uni- versity of Houston’s chief population health o cer, said increasing diagno- ses of obesity and Type 2 diabetes can
transported to the larger hospitals in south Montgomery County. Expansions of roadways due to transportation planning and develop- ment can impact health care, accord- ing to Campbell, who said the hospital district is involved in conversations about transit expansion as well as routes around new developments. Although the hospital district does not tend to receive many calls from new developments, unless they are senior-focused, he said MCHD does monitor how they a ect tra c. Sapina said that while the hospital receives patients from “o the main thoroughfares,” its access to air tran- sit and relationship with EMS services kept transit times low. “Through our network of care in the Houston region, including Mont- gomery County and beyond, we have the scope of services to provide what- ever services our communities may require,” Sapina said. Future population trends Harwell said one challenge Lone Star faces is its dependence on federal government funding, which in turn is dependent on underinsured and uninsured populations. However, the
be indicators of rising chronic disease in a population. Obesity was the most common diagnosis at Lone Star in 2021, according to the center’s report. “When these rates [of obesity] increase, they can point to higher chronic diseases that might not be getting caught,” Beech said. “We’ve seen a plethora of urgent care ser- vices, which are sorely needed. But sometimes getting access to specialty care can be challenging—even getting For Montgomery and Willis-area residents needing trauma care, the closest location is HCA Conroe, which serves as the area’s largest Level II trauma center, according to its web- site. According to Sapina, the hospital relies on its air transport system to reach urgent patients in outlying areas “away from major thoroughfares.” James Campbell, the chief of emer- gency medical services at Montgom- ery County Hospital District, said another option for hospital-level treatment is through “satellite” clin- ics operated by other health care sys- tems. Campbell said patients at these clinics are evaluated, and if necessary, an appointment.” Ambulatory care
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CONROE MONTGOMERY EDITION • JUNE 2022
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