Health Program
Any child up to the age of twenty-one, who resides in Ontario County and has financial need, may qualify for assistance with a medical expense.
A health need may be a medical visit, counseling, a prescription, eye care, dental care, etc. Approval must be secured before the expense is made. No assistance can be provided for past due bills. The advocate must provide the name of the child, date of birth and address. A description of the need and a cost estimate are necessary when submitting a request (e.g., six mental therapy sessions @ $100 for a total request of $600). Approval may be given immediately for requests up to $600. For larger expenditures the full health committee considers the request and responds ASAP. No printed documents are required. An email request is adequate.
Members of the Committee
Dr. Mary Brady
Chair
Sally Alling
Ellen Polimeni
Requests for assistance are typically received from school personnel and/or other agencies.
Please contact your child’s school counselor, nurse, school administrator, or case manager for further information.
Eligibility & Application Process
To access financial assistance for a health need, an advocate (school employee, social worker, nurse, provider, etc.) may place the request by contacting the current Health Committee Chairperson, Mary Brady, by email at bradymar@gmail.com or calling 585-900-1648. The Health Committee Chairperson never speaks directly with a needy family. All requests must come through an advocate who verifies that there exists a financial need (e.g. child qualifies for free or reduced lunch at school).
Approval & Distribution of Funds
The advocate is responsible for contacting the provider and letting them know that the Foundation will pay for the requested service. The advocate provides the Health Committee Chairperson’s address to the provider for billing purposes. The provider of the medical service mails approved bills to:
Ontario Children's Foundation
c/o Mary Brady
4140 County Road 16
Canandaigua, NY 14424
After verifying that the bill is for an approved expense, the chairperson forwards it to the treasurer. Payment is usually made within thirty days.
What People Are Saying
“Ontario County has a much higher poverty rate than many people realize, and the Ontario Children’s Foundation makes it possible for many families to provide vital services and activities their children would otherwise have to do without. Recently OCF has covered for my patients: a week of Summer Recreation, football and baseball registration, karate lessons, gymnastics, a weighted blanket, a mini indoor trampoline, co-pays and fees toward mental health services, psychological testing to qualify for OPWDD services, and books to take home for behavior modification, loss and grief, self-esteem, anger management, and self-control. When I ask a patient what county they live in, I’m disappointed when the answer is not Ontario County because I don’t know how to help them access things they need to improve their mental health and overall quality of life. OCF is a special gift to our community that keeps on giving.”
Help Us Help Children
Begun during the Civil War, Ontario Children’s Foundation remains an effective and viable assistance program today, in part due to generous donors. Please, if you can, Help Us Help Children!