A little caffeine proved good for the Fox Valley's health when a coffee break led to a communitywide approach to helping people in poverty pay for their prescription drugs.

Dr. John Mielke, a retired cardiologist, was at the emergency assistance organization LEAVEN researching poverty issues for the Community Health Action Team (CHAT), which he co-chairs. CHAT takes people on a daylong "plunge" to explore community issues. Jennifer Wanke executive director of LEAVEN, mentioned over coffee that the agency was seeing a substantial increase in requests for assistance to pay for prescription drugs, as was the Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley.

Mielke and his wife, Sally, started bringing people together to search for a solution. The result was the Emergency Prescription Drug Fund, established within the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region last May. A $10,000 grant from the Community Foundation and contributions from companies and individuals have built the fund well beyond the goal of $45,000, the estimated amount needed to supply emergency prescription assistance for 500 people for the first year.

However, the need has proven to be greater than was projected. The fund has helped 400 people in its first seven months and organizers now project 1,200 people per year will need help.

The Community Foundation hosted a discussion Nov. 14 with the Mielkes and representatives of LEAVEN and the Community Health Center for others interested in supporting the fund. Dr. Mielke told attendees that donors, nonprofits and government working together have decreased the cost and increased the quality of care for patients.  Sally Mielke, who served on the boards of both LEAVEN and the Fox Cities Community Health Center, said a "perfect storm" of rising costs and changing regulations brought the issue to a head.

 "We were funding a significant amount of prescription drugs and other health needs," Wanke said. LEAVEN and the shelter helped pay the bills but had to pay top dollar for the drugs and didn't have the expertise to advise people on possible drug incompatibilities, cheaper generic alternatives and other medical issues related to the prescriptions they were funding."They were trying to take care of it the best they could, but we thought as a community we could do better," Dr. Mielke said.

The prescription assistance is now handled by registered nurses at the Community Health Center in Menasha. They try to meet the need first with free drug samples, then $4 retail generics or drugs provided at cost through a federal program. If the drugs are not available through those options, the patients are enrolled in indigent prescription drug programs funded by drug manufacturers. The Emergency Prescription Drug Fund helps the patients pay for the medications while they are waiting to be accepted into those programs.

"It fills the gap," Mielke said of the fund.

"It's working very, very well," Kristene Stacker, interim executive director of the Community Health Center, said. She told of one client who couldn't afford the $231 antibiotic his doctor prescribed. By checking equivalent drugs and conferring with the doctor, a $4 antibiotic was substituted.  

Debra Cronmiller, executive director of the Emergency Shelter, agreed the new system of cooperation among the agencies is working extremely well, but she cautioned that the job is not done.  "This is going to be an ongoing need in this community," she said. "I really believe we're still underestimating the health care need in this community."

For more information on this effort and how to make a donation, go to www.cffoxvalley.org and click on the "Community Emergency Prescription Drug Fund" link or call the Community Foundation at 920-830-1290.