Special Populations

Overview

The Michigan Primary Care Association works with members and partner agencies to better understand and respond to the needs of Michigan’s individuals and families experiencing homelessness, seasonal agricultural workers and LGBTQ+ communities.

Highlighted Topics

Health Care for the Homeless & Michigan Health Centers
In 2024, Michigan health centers served 35,973 patients experiencing homelessness. The Health Care for the Homeless program provides federal grants to nonprofit organizations to deliver primary health care and substance use disorder services to individuals and families experiencing homelessness. The Health Care for the Homeless program provides a multidisciplinary approach to the delivery of care by combining systems of primary care, substance use disorders and mental health services, patient management, and education with aggressive outreach.

Farmworker Health & Michigan Health Centers
In 2024, Michigan health centers served 11,903 seasonal agricultural workers. Farmworker health centers were established in 1962 to provide comprehensive primary care services to seasonal agricultural workers and their families in a culturally sensitive environment. Like health centers, farmworker health centers provide comprehensive health care services to their target population at an affordable price, regardless of insurance status. Farmworker health centers use culturally sensitive clinical protocols, bilingual health personnel, and lay outreach workers.

Resources

Relevant Partners

  • Corporation for Supportive Housing (find information on CSH training and education, lending, consulting and assistance, and policy reform efforts)
  • National Health Care for the Homeless Council (the NHCHC is a membership organization uniting thousands of health care professionals, people with lived experience of homelessness, and advocates in homeless health care, working to improve care and eliminate homelessness)
  • National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center (provides educational programs, resources  and consultation to health care organizations with the goal of optimizing quality, cost-effective health care for LGBTQIA+ people)
  • Health Outreach Partners (HOP’s mission is to build strong, effective, and sustainable grassroots health models by partnering with local community-based organizations across the country in order to improve the quality of life of low-income, vulnerable and underserved populations)
  • MHP Salud (Salud’s Community Health Worker programs serve thousands of Hispanics and Latinos in communities across the country)
  • National Center for Farmworker Health (NCFH seeks to improve the health and provide access to quality healthcare of farmworker families)