Angela Rodriguez, a recent immigrant from Mexico, works two part-time jobs cleaning offices, but she can't afford health care for her two children. When her 10-year-old daughter, Ibeth, complained of ear pain, and her teacher said she might need glasses, Rodriguez turned to the Fairfield-Suisun Family Resource Center (FRC).

Going to the FRC was natural-it's located at her child's school, Anna Kyle Elementary in Fairfield, and staff there had helped Rodri-guez in the past. When Rodriguez got behind on her rent, FRC Community Liaison Ana Maria Parras got help from a local church. And Parras set up a counseling appointment for her 13-year-old son when he was having problems with anger and aggressiveness. Rodriguez says visiting the FRC is comfortable because "everyone speaks my language. Otherwise, I couldn't communicate."

First, Parras got Ibeth an appointment for her ear pain through Solano County's Children's Health Access Program (CHAP), which provides free one-time medical visits. Then she contacted the Lion's Club vision program to get Ibeth a free eye exam and glasses.

Meanwhile Rodriguez and Parras worked to get the family enrolled in California Kids, a low-cost, foundation-funded health insurance program. Rodriguez couldn't afford the enrollment fee-two months' advance payment-so Parras called a local church, which cut a check to California Kids.

With health insurance for her kids, "I feel much more secure," says Rodriguez. Paying her first monthly premium of $20 "was hard because I don't work a lot," she adds. "But I realize how important it is....The bills are higher when your kids get sick and you don't have health insurance."

FRCs connect families to health programs

Because of their strong relationships with families and community resources, Solano County's eight FRCs-coordinated and supported by the Solano County's Children's Network-are at the center of a countywide push for access to health care for all kids. They work in partnership with local schools and the Solano Kids Insurance Program (SKIP), started in 1998 by the Solano County Coalition for Better Health.

Through the coalition, formed 15 years ago when the county hospital closed, "all of the hospitals share in the cost of covering the uninsured," says Jacque McLaughlin, SKIP's director. About two-thirds of the county's uninsured children are eligible for MediCal or Healthy Families, but income caps and immigration status lock many families out of these programs.

To bridge this gap, the coalition subsidizes health insurance premiums for kids whose families earn up to 300 percent of the federal poverty level (or about $45,800 for a family of three), regardless of immigration status. SKIP links families to all available insurance options. As a result, less than five percent of Solano County children lack health insurance.

Last year, SKIP tried a new strategy-working with schools, FRCs, and other partners to enroll 100 percent of children at targeted schools. So far, 13 schools in the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District have reached that goal, including Anna Kyle, which started with about 70 percent of kids insured.

Trust makes the connection

"This is the best strategy we have ever had," says McLaughlin. "The FRC can play such a key role [because it's] known and trusted by the surrounding neighborhood." Here's how the partners work together in the Fairfield-Suisun school district:

• Schools include a bilingual flyer in their enrollment packets, encouraging families to contact the FRCs to find health insurance. The flyer also advertises a district-wide language line, which links parents with translators in many languages for three-way conversations, says Ariceli Cantu-Tong, director of instructional support for the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District. Linking kids to health care "has become part of the system," she says, "part of a systemic approach to effective schools."

• SKIP sends a worker to the FRC one-and-a-half days per week. As a part of the FRC team, SKIP works with schools to identify families without insurance and helps families complete application forms.

• FRCs connect the dots: "The FRC is the place to identify the kids who need health insurance," says Ana Dineen, director of the Fairfield-Suisun FRC and a public health nurse. "The FRC really knows each family and their situation. Programs know they won't get fraudulent referrals." As a result, "almost every kid who comes through our FRC has health insurance," says Dineen.

Because often "families don't come in for insurance until their child is sick," it's essential to be able to link them to health care, says McLaughlin. When a child is ill, the school nurse calls the FRC. Dineen can make the child an appointment through the Children's Health Access Program (CHAP), a partnership with North Bay Health Program, which covers Solano County children for a one-time medical visit.

Sharing resources, sharing success

The partnerships are key, says Dineen: "Community partners help each other...achieve the outcomes. People get hung up on ownership over outcomes. I say, if your kids are healthier, then you look good. It doesn't matter who gets the credit."

The schools recognize that they also benefit from helping to get kids covered. "Healthier kids do better in school. They have fewer social and emotional problems," says Sharon Tucker, superintendent of the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District. "Schools receive money only for children who actually attend. The fewer days kids miss, the more stable our income is."

But it's not about the money, Tucker adds. "As educators, we have a responsibility to be advocates for children. You must feel physically and emotionally safe and secure before you can really learn. It's a no-brainer."

Resources:

• Children's Network, 707-421-7229, www.childnet.org
• Solano Kids Insurance Program, 1-800-978-7547

The research shows

• Studies show that kids who have health insurance are healthier than kids who don't.  And kids with Healthy Families insurance are better able to pay attention in school than children without insurance. (Research review by the 100% Campaign).

• A Florida study showed that uninsured children are 25 percent more likely to miss school than insured children. (Florida Healthy Kids Corporation, 1997).

• One study showed that access to health care dramatically improves after enrollment in health insurance. (J.R. Lave et al, Journal of the American Medical Association, 1998).

• SKIP surveys show that kids with insurance receive more preventive care; most have been in to see primary care doctor every six months.

What is an FRC?

The family resource center (FRC), part of an innovative strategy to promote healthy families and communities, is a warm and welcoming community hub that engages families in a variety of programs and activities that build on their strengths and meet basic needs. FRCs respond to what the community says it needs and often work in partnership with other community agencies.