Health insurance companies UnitedHealth Group and Pacificare donated $731,070 to the UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest. The contribution will aid expansion of a computer system that assists emergency-room doctors in sending uninsured patients to community clinics for follow-up appointments.
The grant was part of $25 million in California grant funding pledged by the insurance companies in 2005 to win regulatory approval of their $8.1-billion merger.
The hospital said it will expand the San Diego Safety Net Health Information Exchange to patients outside the emergency room. In addition, it will increase the number of neighborhood clinics that are linked to the computer system.
