ABOUT ALEX PLUM:
Alex is a servant-leader focused on improving the health and wholeness of people living on the margins. Board certified in healthcare management, his expertise as a nonprofit executive has been informed by his experience addressing the social determinants of health through value-based care models, gleaning lessons on achieving health equity by looking globally, and by drawing on his faith to connect, inspire, and equip communities to be local conduits of health.
As the Executive Director of the Corner Health Center, Alex is responsible for the strategic, financial, and operational oversight of the $4M non-profit center’s mission to provide affordable, judgment-free care to 12-to-25-year-olds and their children. Before coming to the Corner, Alex served for over seven years in senior leadership roles at Henry Ford Health, on the population health and global health teams. Alex incorporates his professional background into his identity as Rev. Plum, an ordained Deacon in the United Methodist Church, pastoring on the clergy team at Birmingham and Berkley First UMCs and serving at the regional and international levels of the church in global health ministry.
Alex is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives, a Salzburg Global Fellow, a former Paul D. Coverdell Fellow, an Emory University Humanitarian honoree, and a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Micronesia, 2008-11). He has completed graduate training in international healthcare supply chain (MBA, Wayne State), behavioral science and health education (MPH, Emory University), and deacon’s theological studies (Certificate, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary). He completed his undergraduate degree at Michigan State’s James Madison College. Alex and his husband Jason live in Detroit with their 4-year-old Golden Retriever, Yolly.
RESOURCES:
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TRANSCRIPTION:
David Fair: This is 89.1 WEMU, and right now, a budget for the state of Michigan's new fiscal year that begins October 1st remains a work in progress. There are certain elements of the spending plan we know to be true--among them, cuts to social safety net programs, like Medicaid. I'm David Fair, and welcome to Washtenaw United. This is our weekly exploration of equity and opportunity in our community. It's hard to assess how far the impacts will be felt, but the anticipation is that the harms could run deep. Alex Plum is the CEO of The Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti. Its mission is to inspire and help 12- to 25-year-olds to live and sustain healthy lives by providing judgment-free, affordable health and wellness care and education. 65% of the patients depend on Medicaid. Alex, thank you so much for taking time to talk with us today!
Alex Plum: Thank you for having me, David!
David Fair: Given what you know about the separate budget proposals in the state House and state Senate, what is best case scenario for Corner Health?
Alex Plum: The best-case scenario is that when the Senate and the House do their reconciliation work, that we get a budget which prioritizes the school aid budget in a way that allows child adolescent health centers, like The Corner, to have dedicated funding. We are one of over 100 child adolescent health centers around the state that rely on school aid funding to provide health care to kids in the areas where they spend the most of their time, which is inside their schools. And so, we're really optimistic that, with support from the Senate and good conversations in the House, we're able to get back on track.
David Fair: And obviously, worst-case would be the exact opposite.
Alex Plum: That's right. Right now, the House budget has removed dedicated funding. The Speaker of the House has rolled up all of that funding into the per-pupil allowance is what it's called. On the face of it, it makes sense. When you think about it, you might think, "Well, of course. We want to give schools the autonomy to make decisions and giving a little bit more money to eat school on a per-pupil allowances a good way to do that." But the problem comes that there are a lot of districts out there that are serving both very rural and urban centers that don't have the same mix of attendance that would benefit them the way it might in a suburban or a district that has a little bit more resource allocation. For those districts that are higher at need, the state has always had a preferential option to ensure that those communities and the kids in those communities can be looked out for. And that's what this budget line item has done for...well, boy, almost 40 years. So, it's something that we're really optimistic will make it back into the budget.
David Fair: It's one thing to talk numbers and budget, but it's more important to talk people and impact. I'd like to get to know your clientele better. Tell me about the challenges facing those who come to Corner Health Center for help and care.
Alex Plum: The Corner, for 45 years, has been the preeminent place in our community for young people to receive judgment-free and affordable health and wellness care and education. Now, I want to highlight both of those because the young people that we see are really coming to us for those two reasons: judgment-free care and affordable care. We like to style ourselves a safety net health center, but we really don't have the protections of the general safety net. Those that are federally qualified health centers like Packard Health, which just does a fantastic job, by the way, in the community, or other federally-qualified centers, which have a little bit more protection when it comes to reimbursement, the Corner prioritizes 12- to 25-year-olds. So, when they come to us, our job is to ensure that they get access to care, irrespective of their ability to pay. You said at the top, 65% of our patients are on Medicaid, but the truth as a lot of them come, even if they're commercially insured, because they're worried about some health condition. And the state allows minors to receive confidential care to a certain point to take care of things like pregnancy testing or STI testing--things that we want to have some autonomy on, even as young people. And so, we operate within what the law allows us to do. But if a young person is receiving confidential care, we can't bill for it. And that's our privilege. It's our privilege to have the trust of those young people to provide that care. But it reinforces that the need--the financial need--that comes into providing this work. The second part: the judgment-free care. And that judgment-free is really important, too, because we have young people who come to us because they've experienced, well, I guess, judgment or bias on some level in the general health care system. We have a growing population of young people, who are looking for gender-affirming care services, for example, and that's become even harder in our community to get. So, we just think it's really important that we center the experiences and the needs of young people in a way that is safe and holistic, and that's been our honor to do that for all these years.
David Fair: This is Washtenaw United on 89.1 WEMU, and today, we're talking Medicaid cuts with Alex Plum. He is CEO of The Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti. As you mentioned, you want to make this very affordable and create access to as many as possible. You do not send outstanding bills to collection agencies. You work with the patients. Is that at risk with significant cuts to Medicaid or other funding mechanisms?
Alex Plum: Honestly, David, it can't be. If we change our mission in that way, that would be a radical departure from what it is that we feel morally called to do in this community. So, what will never happen at the corner is the threat that young people would face a bill or that their privacy would be violated or that we would frankly do anything that would undermine the trusting relationship we have with young people. The reality, though, is if we experience the funding cuts that are currently threatened because the House has not included this school aid funding, what would the impact of The Corner be would be reduced dollars. It would imperil our ability to provide the level of care that's needed in our community. At The Corner, we integrate primary care with some specialty services. We have social workers on hand to help with social needs. We have therapists on hand to help with behavioral health needs. That whole person model would come under threat. It would imperil our ability to provide that whole person picture on site. But our mission-- that's never going to change.
David Fair: We know that when someone feels as though they don't have access to care or that access goes down, the stress levels go up. And when stress levels go up, particularly among portions of the at-risk community, so do suicide rates. Do you share that fear with me based on what we're learning about this state budget?
Alex Plum: Well, yeah. In part, I do. I think one of the things that we're really conscious of is the high rates of anxiety and depression that young people are experiencing. We got to remember this is a generation that went through the pandemic and an incredibly formative moment in their educational experiences. We really do have to look in the world and sort of a dichotomous pre- and post-pandemic. And the young people now, we're five years or so out from that experience, they've had something seismic happened at a really formative moment: how they interface with the world, how they experience challenges has exacerbated in some ways that level of anxiety. And so, our concern, of course, is that any time we have fundamental interruptions to the way that we provide care in our organization, there are spillover effects. And those are sometimes felt in these kind of ways: the manifestation of other forms of mental of stress, which can lead to expressions of suicidality or suicidal ideation. Our focus is to work with our community partners to ensure that we provide uninterrupted care. And, of course, the challenges are profound. They're going to affect us, and they're going affect every other safety net organization in our community, both from what's happened federally and, of course, what's currently happening at the state.
David Fair: So, in partnership with those you work with in the community and those who contribute to your ability to serve in the manner you do, what is the best path forward for Corner Health Center and the members of the community it serves, given the uncertainty at federal level, at state level, and here in the local, philanthropic level?
Alex Plum: I think that folks should always try to operate and act at the most local level they can. And, for all these years, The Corner has had the most generous supporters. Our philanthropic base has enabled us to provide care and ups and downs. We survived the pandemic. We survived the recession, you know? So, I understand and I believe that we're going to be able to weather this storm, too. But individuals have got to be involved, and that takes the shape of many, many things. I think one opportunity that folks have is to get on the phone with their legislator. It's to understand how their local school district is funded and to see the impact that these child adolescent health centers have, not just here in Washtenaw County, but around the state. It's to advocate at the Board of Education. It's to ensure, whatever happens to the state budget, that folks are deeply engaged and understand the impact that integrated health programs have with inside schools and here in community settings like at The Corner. You know, on a more selfish level, of course, we hope that folks will come, and they'll visit The Corner, We have tours two or three times a month. They can always contact us on our contact link on our website, cornerhealth.org. There's links to donate. We have different events throughout the year that folks can participate in or attend--fundraisers and the like. We're always looking for ways for folks to get involved--to volunteer. We had a group of students recently, over the summer, do a big drive. They did a drive of diapers and baby wipes and formula to stock the free store that we have in our basement. The truth is, with these cuts to Medicaid, the ramifications are going to go well beyond health care providers, but individuals who rely on Medicaid coverage and other social safety net benefits are going lose those, too. And the need for pantries, like The Corner's and food stores, that's going to continue to increase. So, there are a myriad of ways that our community can get involved to support our mission.
David Fair: There is a journey in the year ahead, and we'll be walking the path alongside you. And we'll check in again and make sure that all is going as well as it can!
Alex Plum: Well, I appreciate this very much, and thank you so much!
David Fair: That is Alex Plum. He is the CEO of The Corner Health Center in Ypsilanti discussing the real and potential impacts of Medicaid cuts. For more information, pay a visit to our website at WEMU.org when you get a moment. Washtenaw United is a regular Monday feature, and it's produced in partnership with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan. I'm David Fair, and this is your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU-FM Ypsilianti. Celebrating 60 years of broadcasting from the campus of Eastern Michigan University!
WEMU has partnered with the United Way for Southeastern Michigan to explore the people, organizations, and institutions creating opportunity and equity in our area. And, as part of this ongoing series, you’ll also hear from the people benefiting and growing from the investments being made in the areas of our community where there are gaps in available services. It is a community voice. It is 'Washtenaw United.'
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