Grove City to pay healthcare insurance costs for low-income residents
GROVE CITY, Ohio (WCMH) -- Grove City City Council approved a program to help low-income residents pay for healthcare.
On Monday, the council passed the Grove City Care Healthcare Pilot Program, making it one of the nation’s first municipal healthcare grant programs.
Council member Ted Berry proposed the program and is hopeful after the legislation passed. However, he noted there is more work to be done so the community can feel the impact of this program.
“I had no idea that we were going to get a 6 to 0 vote and I'm just kind of elated by it,” Berry said. “I mean, there's a lot of support on council right now.”
The program aims to help households making about $30,000 or less annually to apply for a grant that would pay for health insurance. Indviduals could receive up to $400 a year and families could get up to $600 a year.
“It’s vitally important because, one, we've got to help out,” Berry said. “We got to help out that sector of the population, because one, they're the people that are serving us every day; they're the people helping us in our yard work, they're our laborers that are in our community. They're more important than people think. These people are the backbone of our economy in Grove City and in other cities.”
Even with a unanimous vote, some members of the council still had differing thoughts on how best to tackle this issue. The $75,000 proposed to over the program isn’t enough, some members said, citing inflation and rising housing costs.
Berry is open-minded to his colleague's opinions and dedicated to getting this program started.
"The next step to moving forward is basically we're going to put the committee together,” Berry said. “The committee is going to be made up of some professionals in the insurance industry and in the public sector and what we're going to do is come up with a plan that meets all the guidelines. One, there's a desire to fully to fully help people that can't afford it, and the second thing is, is creating the plan that will encompass all the needs and everything.”
According to Berry, after the committee sets up the program, it is expected to be up and running within two to three months.