Community benefits are programs or activities that provide treatment and/or promote health and healing as a response to identified community needs.  In particular, a community benefit responds to needs of special populations, such as persons living in poverty and other underserved populations. 

 

Yes.  For example, the health system spent $229 million on community benefits for the fiscal year July 2007 through June 2008. Of that total, $45 million was attributed to Charity Care, $107.5 million for Medicaid program losses and unreimbursed costs of treating Medicare patients,  $38 million to Health Professions Education, and $7.5 million to the Lincoln Community Health Center and similar programs.  For more details about Duke Medicine’s contributions, see our Partners in Care pamphlet.

 

 

Duke Medicine is dedicated to advancing the health and well-being of the people we serve through integrated, innovative, and compassionate care. As the largest employer in Durham County , and third-largest private employer in North Carolina , Duke Medicine’s physicians, nurses, and staff are devoted to ensuring that medical care is accessible to all people across the region regardless of their ability to pay.

 

The health system collects data using the Community Benefit Index for Social Accountability (CBISA) software which was developed collaboratively with the Catholic Health Association, VHA, Inc. and Lyon Associates, Inc. The software, approved by the North Carolina Hospital Association for capturing details on community benefits, enables not-for profit hospitals to measure their effectiveness by quantifying the financial and social impact of community benefit activities. The Finance department submits the community benefits information on an annual basis to the North Carolina Medical Care Commission and the IRS for reporting purposes.