Like many health departments nationwide, Genesee County’s provides a range of services for residents including everything from immunizations to family planning to breastfeeding resources and support to hearing and vision screenings.
Those services aren’t always utilized at maximum capacity, however, because barriers exist for many residents who need them. Lack of transportation to a clinic, hours that conflict with work or school schedules, lack of childcare, and mobility challenges are just a handful of the reasons people aren’t always able to access services. A new mobile unit launched by the Genesee County Health Department hopes to change that.
The Health Department unveiled COMPASS (Community Outreach Mobile-unit: Providing Access, Support, and Services), a 38-foot mobile health bus equipped with lab space, phlebotomy space, an exam room, restroom, and other equipment, at the Genesee County Health and Resource Fair on June 10. The bus also has a lift and is compliant with Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility requirements.
“COMPASS is our community mobile unit providing access, support, and services to the community,” said Michelle Estell, health officer at the Genesee County Health Department. “The goal is to have the services come to individuals in our community instead of always having the community come here, so it provides more access. We want to provide health equity to all.”
Estell said that the idea came in part through strategic listening sessions with clients, who asked for more flexibility in ways they could access Health Department programs, services, and resources. Transportation, in particular, has been one of the biggest factors in getting more people connected to programs.
“It’s one of the largest barriers that we have, especially with the services that we have,” Estell said. “Oftentimes people are bringing children, sometimes we have clients that need a wheelchair or walker. So it’s difficult to pack up yourself or children and strollers and hop on a city bus and come here. This is our attempt at getting the services right to the clients. This will take them directly into neighborhoods, schools, and various community events.”
Currently, the county is in the process of hiring a driver to operate the vehicle, but plans to have COMPASS out and visible in the community this summer. Once it is operating, Estell said the goal is to have it out multiple times per week, including at some evening and weekend events to give people the opportunity to access services at times outside of standard work or school hours.
In Genesee County, access to care is even more critical for residents who are at much greater risk for several health problems. According to a 2025 health needs assessment conducted by the Health Department, Greater Flint Health Coalition, Hurley Medical Center, McLaren Flint, and Henry Ford Health, those include:
- Nearly double the statewide average for people struggling with substance use
- Over 20 percent of the population struggling with their mental health, including 23 percent of students responding that they’d contemplated suicide in the 12 months prior to taking the survey
- Higher rates of food and housing insecurity than statewide averages
- Low literacy levels
- A higher percentage of the population living in poverty
Those and other factors all limit residents’ ability to even know what types of resources are available to them at the Health Department, let alone access them. Now, when COMPASS is out in the community, residents will have easier access to services that include:
- Immunizations: Flu shots, childhood vaccines, and more
- Maternal & Child Health Services: WIC enrollment, prenatal resources, and infant safe sleep education
- Disease Prevention & Screenings: STI and HIV testing, and health screenings
- Health Education & Resources: Take-home materials, referrals, and connection to local programs
- Community Health Navigation: Help connecting residents to services, benefits, and support programs
Brad Snyder, deputy health officer, said the mobile unit was designed specifically to house those services. He also said it is intended to be complementary of other health service providers in the area that have mobile units – Genesee Health System, Hamilton Health Network, and several other local healthcare organizations have some variation of a mobile option to get care and resources out into the community, and COMPASS will add to that.
“When we designed it, we designed it from the ground up, based on the services that we offer,” Snyder said. “It wasn’t really based on what else has been built before. We know a few other community partners have mobile units, but this offers our specific services.”
Funding for COMPASS is through the Genesee County Health Services Millage. That millage, first approved by voters in 2006 and renewed in 2012 and 2018, provides funding for the Health Department and other healthcare organizations and providers to offer services to uninsured residents – according to Michigan State University Department of Public Health’s Health Equity Report Card, about 6 percent of county residents under 65 are uninsured.
The millage covers people who work multiple jobs but are not offered insurance by their employer, seasonal or temporary employees, people who have been laid off or lost jobs, and seniors or other adults who don’t qualify for Medicare or other health coverage. It helps provide coverage, case management and health navigation, dental coverage to seniors and veterans, and more services.
The millage is up for renewal this year. The Genesee County Board of Commissioners has had discussions about when to place it on the ballot again, with Ron Fonger of MLive reporting earlier this spring that it is likely to go in front of voters for renewal in November.
COMPASS currently has a web page to provide more information and will be updated when it is ready to roll out in the community. Eventually, there will be a request system setup where residents and organizations can request it at their events, schools, churches, or other venues. The Health Department Facebook and Instagram pages also regularly provide news and updates.
“The conception of COMPASS came from what our mission is at the Genesee County Health Department,” Snyder said. “We’re focused on public health equity for all of our residents, and COMPASS really puts that mission into play and meets people where they’re at so they don’t have to come to us all the time.”
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