On August 15, 2017, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Price, issued a press release reporting that almost $105 million dollars will be bestowed upon 1,333 health centers across the United States, including its territories and Washington D.C. Secretary Price stated “Americans deserve a healthcare system that’s affordable, accessible, of the highest quality, with ample choices, driven by world-leading innovations, and responsive to the needs of the individual patient. Supporting health centers across the country helps achieve that mission.”
According to the Health Resources & Services Administration, also known as HRSA, federally qualified health centers (FQHC) “are community-based and patient-directed organizations that deliver comprehensive, culturally competent, high-quality primary health care services.” The main function of a health center is to provide health services to underprivileged patients where affordable healthcare is either lacking or nonexistent. Services include, but are not limited to, mental health support, substance abuse aid, dental health and many other services. While there are numerous requirements for an organization to qualify as a FQHC, one interesting qualification is that the organization must elect members of the community to serve on its governing board—ensuring that the community has a role when it comes to its own healthcare.
Even though the concept of a health center may be foreign to many in the United States, health centers play an important role in our society. HRSA has concluded that, based on data from its Uniform Data System, almost 26 million individuals (which equals 1 in every 12 people living in the United States) depended on a health center for health services in 2016, including more than 330,000 veterans. The study also found that 1 in every 3 people living in poverty relied on a health center in 2016.
Living in a politically toxic climate on the topic of healthcare and its reforms, as we currently do today, brings in a breath of fresh air to see our tax dollars being put to good use. Health centers have served as a unique and beneficial service for the underserved and underprivileged for the last 50 years and the Federal government’s continued support appears to be unwavering.
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