Objectives/Goals: This project evaluates the acceptability to patients of offering free tax preparation and joint charity-care enrollment in a clinical setting, leveraging an Internal Revenue Service-supported free income tax preparation program. The goal is to reduce administrative barriers and promote continuous access to care. Methods/Study Population: In September 2025, three members of our study team conducted in-person surveys with patients and visitors in outpatient waiting areas at Parkland Health, the county safety-net health system serving Dallas County in North Texas. The 16-item bilingual (English/Spanish) survey was developed in partnership with a large, Internal Revenue Service-supported, local VITA program, Dallas Community Tax Centers (DCTC). The survey collected sociodemographic information, household income, tax-filing practices, current charity care program enrollment status, and interest in combined VITA–charity care enrollment/renewal services. Data were entered into REDCap and analyzed descriptively in Excel. Results/Anticipated Results: Of 300 approached patients, 232 completed the survey, yielding a response rate of 77% (28% Spanish-preferring). Most respondents (86%) estimated that their household income was below 67, 000, which would qualify them for VITA tax preparation, yet 82% of those eligible reported that they paid a tax preparer last year. More than half (54%) of respondents were enrolled in the charity care program for the county health system, and 87%of these adults indicated that integrated tax-and-charity care enrollment/renewal services would be helpful. Awareness and reported uptake of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) was low: only 11% of respondents reported applying for EITC during the recent tax season. Interest in shifting to free on-site tax prep services was high, with 72% of respondents indicating a favorable response. Discussion/Significance of Impact: Embedding tax preparation and streamlining charity-care assistance applications in clinical environments was well received and highly acceptable. Future steps include piloting joint VITA–charity-care applications services to assess impact on operational workflows, uptake of both programs, continuity of care, and health outcomes.
R.C. et al. (2026) studied this question.