The City of Ferris’ “Access for All” healthcare solution introduced back in the summer by Ferris City Manager Brooks Williams has arrived.
What has been called by many an unprecedented use of funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (“ARPA”), has now began benefiting Ferris residents.
The mobile healthcare team from MD Health Pathways rolled into the city’s downtown square early last week and setting up a free appointment is as easy as registering by phone or email.
“The answer to an uncomplicated healthcare system in our city has arrived and we are excited to offer all our residents easy healthcare through frontline doctors and nurses reinventing how community health services can meet the needs of the individual,” Williams said.
While the process took several months to put into place before the mobile healthcare team was set up, Williams worked tirelessly with MD Health Pathways using the funds offered by the federal government to make it happen. His reasoning – to improve the system of healthcare for Ferris residents using both a mobile and virtual healthcare service model offering treatment, education, and personal care to the patient.
“Residents have found they can no longer only rely on the limitations of fixed health operations,” Williams said of the “Access for All” model. “With funding from the federal government, and no impact to our general fund or local taxpayers, we have created a health solution, for the health of all residents, that offers convenience, consistency, and efficiency through a combination of telehealth, cloud-based data management, mobile healthcare team deployment, low-cost essential medication delivery, and patient advocacy.”
Not intended as a government-run healthcare program, the “Access for All” program being offered to Ferris residents works alongside local EMS providers, fire stations, social services, faith-based organizations, and primary care physicians to support the goal of building an effective, and leading edge health infrastructure.
“When the City of Ferris partnered with MD Health Pathways, a team of experienced frontline doctors, nurses, and certified caretakers, our goal was to be part of the continued importance of reinventing how health services meet the needs of the individual in order to achieve health equity.”
When Williams introduced “Access for All” no municipality had addressed the issues of mental or physical help in this way.
“Ferris is leading the pack,” Williams concluded. “Local solutions create positive results for our residents, and I hope opens a way for more conversations about the importance of ongoing creative solutions that allow for valuable services to our citizens. The healthcare system today is broken. Medical providers are paid for quantity, not quality. Redundant testing and overtreatment with a low potential for improved health outcomes has become the status quo. This disruptive solution is meant to make healthcare accessible to all our citizens and show that targeted care and early intervention drive costs down. This isn’t about more or bigger government, this is about a smarter, more agile, and problem-solving government. It is a part of what makes us Distinct by Design.”
About the City of Ferris: The City of Ferris is a city located in both Dallas and Ellis County. It is located along I-45. A rapidly growing community, Ferris is 20 miles south of downtown with a total of 4.8 square miles.
