Health Insurance Coverage in Johnson County
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 93% of Johnson County residents were insured in 2017, down from 95% in 2016. This drop between 2016 and 2017 represents approximately 9,000 more members of our community without health insurance, limiting their ability to seek medical help when they needed it, afford prescription medications, and obtain preventative health care.
Where Johnson County residents obtain their insurance differs depending on household income level. People at the highest income level are three times more likely to get their health insurance through their employers compared to those at the lowest income level. To read the full factsheet, click here.
Johnson County Prepares for 2019 Homelessness Point-in-Time Count
Each year, Johnson County's Continuum of Care on Homelessness (CoC) conducts a count of persons experiencing homelessness in the county to better understand how many are experiencing homelessness, their households' characteristics and identify local gaps in housing and supports. As the CoC's lead agency, UCS annually works with its partner organizations to collect and compile the data to better serve some of the community's most vulnerable households.
In 2019, data will be collected on where households slept on Tuesday January 22, 2019. The purpose of the Point-in-Time Count is to enumerate the number of persons who slept overnight in emergency shelter, transitional housing, or in places not meant for human habitation (e.g. on the streets, in their car, in abandoned buildings, in temporary camps). Local service organizations and volunteers will be collecting the data Wednesday through Friday, January 23-25. The count is a snapshot of who is experiencing homelessness in the county on one day - their ages, type of households, barriers to housing and employment, and other characteristics. Understanding who experiences homelessness locally assists housing and service providers plan for appropriate programs and supports to partner with households to regain safe and stable housing.
Results of the 2018 Point-in-Time Count for Johnson County Homelessness can be viewed here.
Register Now for Advocating for LGBTQ Youth Affected by Trauma - February 22nd Transitional-Age Youth Speaker Series Event
UCS is partnering with area agencies to implement the Transitional-Age Youth (TAY) Planning Project. The goal of this project is that every at-risk transitional-age youth in Johnson County will enter adulthood successfully. Following a year-long planning process, the Leadership Team is now implementing a plan that coordinates best practices, protocols, and evaluation measures to ensure responsive and adequate delivery of services and supports for at-risk TAY.
UCS and the TAY Leadership Team have launched a speaker series aimed at engaging the community in the needs of the TAY population in Johnson County.
Friday, February 22, Randall Jenson, Director and Founder of SocialScope Productions will present a half-day session on advocating for LGBTQ Youth affected by trauma. This session is for educators, service providers and volunteers who work with youth. Thanks to grant support from the REACH Healthcare Foundation, there is no charge to attend this event. Seating is limited, and registration is required. Click here to register.
During the session, participants will:
- Explore the intersections between LGBTQ youth oppression and the types of trauma LGBTQ youth face.
- Gain understanding of common experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) youth beyond the traditional school and education system, specifically LGBTQ youth in the foster care system and juvenile detention centers, and those who experience homelessness, trafficking and are on the streets.
- Learn about complementary frameworks of anti-violence advocacy that focus on anti-oppression, harm reduction, trauma informed care, positive youth development and transformative justice best-practices to support LGBTQ youth.
- Explore their own understandings of the typical pathologies placed on LGBTQ youth, often as ways to deny or minimize the trauma and abuse LGBTQ youth face.
- Practice case scenarios on ways they can use effective advocacy techniques to support LGBTQ youth.
Randall Jenson is a queer, multiracial and nationally recognized anti-violence advocate and artist of color. For the past 17 years, he has worked closely with street-based youth, youth of color and LGBTQ youth in Chicago, St. Louis and Kansas City in the fields of youth programming and anti-violence advocacy. Randall is the Director and Founder of SocialScope Productions, a consulting and coaching company focused on LGBTQ multimedia projects, community storytelling and building innovative, equity program design models. He also currently serves as the Program Director for Transformations, a KC youth trans and gender non-conforming youth group and young people questioning their gender identity.
