by Judi Sotelo, Supervisor
I’d like to give a shout-out to Carmen Rodarte and Diana Aguirre (SB Medi-Cal Intake Unit).
A caregiver to one of our elderly clients reached out for help. She unexpectedly began to lose her eyesight and was in need of surgery but she did not have insurance. Given the situation with her eyesight, I couldn’t simply refer her to apply for Medi-Cal online or send her a paper application, and she did not meet criteria for our Adult Services programs where a social worker could be assigned to assist her.
I reached out directly to Carmen and I asked if she would be willing to do an outreach call to take an application over the phone. There was no hesitation on Carmen’s part. She responded quickly, and by the following day, she and Diana Aguirre were in contact with this lady to assist her. They discovered that due to her income as a caregiver, she didn’t qualify for the free program, but they helped her figure out a way to qualify her beginning the following month.
Within two days of reaching out to Carmen, this lady’s Medi-Cal with no share of cost was granted and now she will be able to schedule her much-needed surgery. They helped someone in need and at the same time, they indirectly helped our elderly client too, because she would not be able to live safely at home without her caregiver.
Thank you!