Bush Administration re-funds community health centers

At a time when access to primary healthcare is proving increasingly important--especially for hospitals that want to avoid needless emergency department trips--it's probably looking like good news to most providers that the Bush Administration has refunded federal community health centers, rural healthcare service outreach grants and the National Health Services Corps until 2012. 

Community health centers care for more than 18 million people at 6,600 sites across the U.S., often in underserved and rural areas, while the National Health Services Corps offers financial assistance to med students who agree to offer primary care in medically underserved areas

Bush signed the Health Care Safety Net Act of 2008, which increases funding for federal community health centers to $3.3 billion by the year 2012, up from $2.1 billion. At the same time, it grows funding for the National Health Services Corps to $185 million during the same five-year period.

To learn more about these programs:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

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