Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) announced Wednesday that the Department of Health and Human Services awarded $5.5 million to six community health centers in Vermont. The health centers will use this new federal funding to renovate facilities, increase patient capacity and expand primary care services. The Vermont awards are part of $260 million in health infrastructure funding announced today for 290 community health centers in 45 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The funding comes from the Health Center Trust Fund, which was created by a Sanders provision in the Affordable Care Act that provides $11 billion for community health centers across the United States. Congress extended the Sanders provision last year with bipartisan support.
“I am proud that we continue to see significant increases in the number of patients accessing health care at community health centers in Vermont and around the country,” said Sanders, who serves as the ranking member of the Senate Subcommittee on Primary Health. “I am pleased to see Vermont receive these much-needed awards, which will allow our community health centers to serve even more Vermonters who today lack adequate access to affordable health care.”
In 2006, fewer than 10 percent of Vermont residents received their health care at Federally Qualified Health Centers. This year, roughly 1 in 4 Vermonters, more than 150,000 people, will receive affordable primary medical, oral and mental health care services and low-cost prescription drugs at more than 50 sites across the state.
“Although I am very pleased with today’s announcement, millions of Americans still do not have access to the primary and oral health care they need,” Sanders said. “Congress must continue to protect and expand community health centers to ensure people in Vermont and throughout the United States have access to health care.”
The following Vermont health centers received awards today:
· Battenkill Valley Health Center, Arlington: $1,000,000
· Community Health Centers of the Rutland Region: $752,502
· Copley Professional Services Group, Morrisville: $1,000,000
· Little Rivers Health Care, Bradford: $999,928
· Richford Health Center: $724,780
· Springfield Medical Care Systems: $1,000,000
Nationally
HHS Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced over $260 million in funding to 290 health centers in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico for facility renovation, expansion, or construction. Health centers will use this funding to increase their patient capacity and to provide additional comprehensive primary and preventive health services to medically underserved populations.
“Health centers are cornerstones of the communities they serve,” said Secretary Burwell. “Today’s awards will empower health centers to build more capacity and provide needed health care to hundreds of thousands of additional individuals and their families.”
These awards will allow health centers to renovate or acquire new health center clinical space to help provide care to over 800,000 new patients nationwide. This investment builds on the nearly $150 million awarded to 160 health centers for construction and/or renovation in September 2015. This funding comes from the Affordable Care Act’s Community Health Center (CHC) Fund, which was extended with bipartisan support in the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) of 2015.
“Providing funding to help health centers renovate their facilities will allow them to provide care to more patients,” said HRSA Acting Associate Administrator Jim Macrae. “Perhaps more importantly though, health centers will now be able to provide more health services in one location, better meeting the needs of their communities.”
Since the beginning of 2009, health centers have added 6 million patients; they now serve nearly 23 million people each year. Today, nearly 1,400 health centers operate about 9,800 service delivery sites in every U.S. state, D.C., Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the Pacific Basin.
To view a list of the award winners, visit: http://bphc.hrsa.gov/programopportunities/fundingopportunities/hiip/2016awards/
For more information on the FY 2015 Health Infrastructure Investment Program Awards, visit: http://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2015/09/15/hhs-awards-nearly-500-million-affordable-care-act-funding-health-centers-expand-primary-care.html
To learn more about HRSA’s Health Center Program, visit: http://bphc.hrsa.gov/about/index.html
To find a health center in your area, visit: http://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov/
BURLINGTON, Vt., May 4 – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders