July 27, 2009
Chicago Family Health Center Announces “National Health Center Week” Celebration
CFHC to join national celebration of America’s Community Health Centers
Chicago, IL — July 27, 2009 — Chicago Family Health Center will join the rest of America’s more than 1,200 Community Health Centers in celebrating National Health Center Week 2009 (August 9-15, 2009).
The theme of the week, “Where Access and Quality Care Begin,” highlights health centers’ roles as “health care homes” for some 18 million people in America, providing primary and preventive care and a range of services. Chicago Family Health Center serves more than 19,000 patients in South and Southeast communities of Chicago each year — a number that is increasing due to layoffs and cutbacks during the economic downturn. Health center patients pay on an income-based sliding fee scale; no one is turned away, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
“Everyone should have the choice of a Community Health Center as their health care home,” said Warren J. Brodine, CEO of Chicago Family. “We provide high-quality, comprehensive services that emphasize primary care and wellness so that families can stay healthy. National Health Center Week is a time to spread the message that we need to invest in an accessible and affordable community health system that can reduce disparities, improve health and achieve cost savings.”
Events marking National Health Center Week 2009 include health fairs, media events and visits by local, state and national leaders to health centers in their communities. Two days are set aside to focus on special populations: Health Care for the Homeless Day will be observed on Wednesday, August 12, and Farmworker Health Day will be observed on Thursday, August 13.
The spotlight comes at a time when the American Recovery or Reinvestment Act (ARRA), or the federal economic stimulus bill, has made increased access to care possible. Community Health Centers were among the first recipients of stimulus funding; $338 million in so-called Increased Demand for Services grants will enable health centers to provide quality care to an additional 2.1 million patients over the next two years.
Long-term, health centers are envisioned as a major part of the solution for providing care to the 60 million people in the United States who are — according to a report by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) — medically disenfranchised. A health center plan called ACCESS for All America has the goal of preserving, strengthening and expanding health centers, ultimately providing affordable, high-quality care to all medically underserved.
Chicago Family Health Center is a community-based, non-profit health center that provides comprehensive, accessible, affordable primary healthcare to the residents of South Chicago, South Deering, East Side, Roseland, Pullman, West Pullman and surrounding communities in the South and Southeast side of Chicago. Chicago Family provides healthcare to all people regardless of race, religion, language, gender, age, income or their ability to pay. In 2008, Chicago Family Health Center served more than 19,600 men, women and children.
For more information on National Health Center Week, call Kathryn L. McLain at (773) 768-5000, extension 1144.
