A California Department of Managed Health Care grant will give 5,000 San Joaquin County farm workers, mainly recent immigrants, access to personal health records.

Director of the Department of Managed Health Care Cindy Ehnes says usually these mobile workers don’t have health insurance. She says the cards will make it easier for them to access care anywhere.

“This population in particular because of the fragmentation of care suffer often from very undiagnosed medical conditions, or unattended medical conditions, as well as diabetes and hypertension.” 

Ehnes says the workers can take the card into clinics. Doctors across the state can then use them to get their medical history online. She says UnitedHealth Group and PacifiCare of California funded the almost half million dollar program.