HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt on Friday announced grants worth almost $125 million to help health centers increase access to health care for low-income and uninsured Americans. Grants totaling $45 million will be used to establish 86 new health center sites in 33 states and the District of Columbia.
Additional grants worth $55 million will expand medical capacity at 132 existing health centers; the remaining $25 million will supplement health centers’ base grant awards to offset rising costs associated with maintaining current service levels.
“The funds we’re announcing today will help almost 900,000 more low-income and uninsured patients access the key preventive and primary healthcare services that health centers offer,” said Leavitt. “The grants also bring us very close to completing President Bush’s multi-year initiative to provide health care to millions more Americans by expanding the health center system.”
Launched in 2002, the president’s health center initiative aimed to significantly increase access to primary healthcare services in 1,200 communities by supporting new or expanded health center sites.
