The Austen BioInnovation Institute's Community Outreach to the Medically Underserved (COMU) initiative will build a community outreach organization to coordinate and deliver health care to the growing medically underserved populations, going beyond treatment to also include the holistic integration of access, prevention and disease management.

COMU seeks to meet health and human needs in the region, improve community wellness, and ultimately help stem the rising costs of uncompensated care for the community and partner health institutions.

COMU's care delivery infrastructure will not only be a vehicle to coordinate and deliver care to an increasing number of the community's medically underserved, but also a way to pilot and analyze new approaches for improving community health. Leveraging and integrating technology will be one of the key ways COMU will better facilitate access and delivery of better care.