The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded 1,292 health centers across the United States and its possessions nearly $1 billion for construction and renovation efforts.
The funds came from the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act and were distributed through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). HHS predicted that the money would improve the country's overall healthcare infrastructure as well as promote health equity among underserved populations.
“Health centers are life lines for many of our most vulnerable families across the country, especially during this epidemic,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a release. “Thanks to American Rescue Plan funds, we're updating facilities around the country to better respond to COVID-19's most pressing public health concerns. This massive investment allows us to increase access to care for COVID-19 testing, treatment, and vaccination, all with an eye on promoting equity.”
HRSA has released $42 million to health clinics that are "vulnerable." COVID-19 is putting a strain on these patients, according to the administration, who are medically underserved or otherwise vulnerable.
Centers designated by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will use this money to “build new facilities, renovate and expand existing buildings to improve pandemic response and acquire new state-of-the-art technology, such as telehealth technology, mobile medical vehicles, and freezers to store vaccines.”
Individual HRSA-funded nonprofit organizations will benefit from these grants, which total around $946 million and might provide up to seven figures to each recipient.
The state of California will receive more than $139 million in funding across 166 awards, with the most support going to healthcare organizations. Texas' nearly $50 million spread among 66 recipients was next, followed by New York's nearly $54 million award divided among 62 participants.
“Health center construction and modernization will significantly expand access to affordable, high-quality primary health care services in underserved areas across the United States,” according to HRSA Acting Administrator Diana Espinosa.
The announcement of the funding comes shortly after 10 higher education and minority-serving institutions were granted $73 million from the American Rescue Plan's public health IT workforce development program. In May, the White House had planned to allocate $7.4 billion from the stimulus act to expand the broader public health workforce.
The government has also allocated $8.6 billion from the American Rescue Plan Act and another $17 billion from the $178 billion pot passed last year as part of the CARES Act to pay for pandemic expenses for smaller providers and those caring for a lot of Medicaid or Medicare patients.