WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (both D-Md.) today announced Maryland received $1,711,246 in grants from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to support four new community health centers Maryland. These funds will help care for more than 17,000 additional Marylanders by establishing new health center service delivery sites in Baltimore, West River, Derwood and Oakland.
“Community health centers are the backbone to providing quality health care for almost 300,000 Marylanders today. The need continues to grow,” said Senator Cardin. “Year after year, the Affordable Care Act continues to make direct investments in expanding the reach of these essential health care providers so they can better deliver quality, accessible services to millions of new patients in communities across Maryland and nationwide.”
“Community health centers provide an important safety net for the people who need it most,” Senator Mikulski said. “This is especially important in these economically-trying times when there is more need and fewer resources. These Affordable Care Act funds will help community health centers open their doors in under-served Maryland communities, making sure families have access to reliable health care in their own neighborhoods, while at the same time creating and sustaining good-paying jobs. I’m very proud to have fought for these funds in the federal checkbook that will help Maryland families in their day-to-day lives.”
Community health centers work to improve communities’ health by ensuring access to comprehensive, culturally competent, quality primary health care services. Maryland health centers served 291,579 patients last year, 25 percent of them uninsured. As community-based and patient-directed organizations, health centers are well positioned to be responsive to the specific health care needs of their community. Through the Affordable Care Act’s commitment to expand access to high quality health care for all Americans, these grants will support the establishment of new full-time service delivery sites.
Today, nationwide approximately 1,200 health centers operate more than 9,000 service delivery sites that provide care to over 21 million patients in every State, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Pacific Basin. Since the beginning of 2009, health centers have added 4 million patients and more than 35,000 new full-time positions.
To learn more about HRSA’s Health Center Program, visit http://bphc.hrsa.gov/about/index.html.
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