UChicago Medicine Invests Over $700 Million in South Side and South Suburbs
UChicago Medicine Invests Over $700 Million in South Side and South Suburbs (Chicago, IL) — The University of Chicago Medicine provided $730.9 million in benefits and services to communities on Chicago’s South Side and in the south suburbs in fiscal 2023, according to the health system’s annual Community Benefit Report. The investments — which increased by 6.5% over fiscal 2023 — included $636.6 million through the University of Chicago Medical Center and $94.3 million through UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial.
UChicago Medicine’s annual community benefit investment has more than doubled since 2013, bringing the health system’s total reported community investments to more than $5 billion over the past decade.
These investments — which help reduce the health disparities that disproportionately affect South Side and south suburban residents — include uncompensated care for Medicare and Medicaid patients, financial assistance (charity care), unrecoverable patient debt, medical education and research, and other community support.
UChicago Medicine’s Urban Health Initiative leads planning of community benefit programs and activities and works with community organizations on health-related programs, research and services. Community Advisory Councils, led by civic and faith leaders, also provide guidance to the Medical Center and Ingalls Memorial on key community health concerns — including racial disparities and social drivers of health, which are non-clinical factors that influence health outcomes.
“Health equity can only be achieved when organizations work together to meet the needs of their communities,” said Brenda Battle, RN, BSN, MBA, who leads UChicago Medicine’s Urban Health Initiative and serves as the health system’s Senior Vice President for Community Health Transformation and its Chief Equity Officer. “Our partners are essential to our mission — helping us determine the top health priorities for our patients and their families, and identify the best ways to reach and support them. We are grateful to all the community organizations who have worked with us over the past year, and we look forward to even more fruitful partnerships in the years to come.”
UChicago Medicine serves 12 ZIP codes on Chicago’s South Side, along with 13 ZIP codes across the south suburbs. Health priorities for the service areas are assessed with community guidance and reported every three years through Community Health Needs Assessments (CHNA).
The most recent assessment, the 2021-22 CHNA, reported the following health priorities for UChicago Medicine’s South Side service area: prevent and manage chronic disease (cancer, diabetes and heart disease); build trauma resiliency (violence prevention & recovery and mental health); and reduce inequities caused by social determinants of health (access to care, food insecurity, and workforce development). The next assessment will be released in 2025.
For Southland communities served by UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial, the 2021-22 priorities are: prevent and manage chronic disease (cancer, diabetes and heart disease); provide access to care and services (maternal health and mental health); and reduce inequities caused by social determinants of health (food insecurity and workforce development), also known as social drivers of health.
To read the full Community Benefit Report online, visit: community.uchicagomedicine.
UChicago Medicine Invests Over $700 Million in South Side and South Suburbs
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