SHAHEEN ANNOUNCES OVER $1.6 MILLION IN RECOVERY ACT FUNDING COMING TO NEW HAMPSHIRE FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

(Washington, D.C.) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen announced today that New Hampshire will receive $1,660,216 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding for community health centers through the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Increased Demand for Services grant program. This funding will not only help serve the growing number of New Hampshire residents who have lost their health insurance during the economic crisis, it will create or retain jobs by allowing community health centers to expand services.

“As more families in New Hampshire lose their health care because of this economic crisis, community health centers will play an even more important role in keeping our state healthy,” said Shaheen. “This funding will not only help uninsured families weather this economic storm, it will create and retain jobs by helping community health centers expand services. I’m committed to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to achieve comprehensive health care reform that brings down costs and expands access, and supporting community health centers is a crucial part of that process.”

Community health centers play a key role in serving uninsured Americans. One of every 19 people living in the U.S. now relies on a clinic funded by HHS for primary care. Health centers receiving Increased Demand for Services (IDS) grants previously submitted plans detailing how the grants would be used. Permitted uses of IDS grants include expanding services, adding new providers, and extending hours of operation.

A detailed list of funding for New Hampshire health centers follows:

For more information about IDS grants, please visit: http://www.hhs.gov/recovery/. An HHS press release announcing this funding follows:

News Release

HHS Releases $338 Million to Expand Community Health Centers, Serve More Patients

Grants Will Support Centers That Care for the Uninsured, Support Up to 6,400 Jobs

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today announced the release of $338 million to expand services offered at the nation’s community health centers.  The money was made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and comes as more Americans join the ranks of the uninsured.

“More Americans are losing their health insurance and turning to health centers for care,” said Health Resources and Services Administrator (HRSA) Mary Wakefield, Ph.D., R.N.  “These grants will aid centers in their efforts to provide care to an increasing number of patients during the economic downturn.”

The grants -- titled Increased Demand for Services (IDS) grants -- will be distributed to 1,128 federally qualified health center grantees.  Health centers will use the funds over the next two years to create or retain approximately 6,400 health center jobs.

Grantees submitted plans explaining how the IDS funds would be used.  Strategies to expand services may include, but are not limited to, adding new providers, expanding hours of operations or expanding services.  The funds will provide care to an additional 2.1 million patients over the next two years, including approximately 1 million uninsured people.

Health centers deliver preventive and primary care services to patients regardless of their ability to pay; charges for services are set according to income.  Health centers served more than 16 million patients in 2007, about 40 percent of whom had no health insurance.

The IDS awards are the second set of health center grants provided through the Recovery Act.  On March 2, President Obama announced grants worth $155 million to establish 126 new health centers.  Those grants will provide access to health center care for 750,000 people in 39 states and two territories.

To see a list of grantees by state, go to http://www.hhs.gov/recovery/programs/hrsa/idsgawards.html.To find a health center near you or to learn more about health centers, visit http://bphc.hrsa.gov/

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The activities described in this release are being funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).  To track the progress of HHS activities funded through the ARRA, visit www.hhs.gov/recovery.  To track all federal funds provided through the ARRA, visit www.recovery.gov.