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» News & Events » 2009 Press Releases » 7/13 - TCHD & CommUnityCare get stimulus funding
TCHD & CommUnityCare receive $1.88M in Stimulus Funding to Increase Access
The Travis County Healthcare District on behalf of CommUnityCare has been awarded a $1,882,855 Federal Stimulus Grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
The new funding, announced by U.S. Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), will facilitate access to health care for an additional 5,720 medically underserved Travis County residents each year. The East Austin and South Austin health centers, which are two of the largest facilities within the District’s affiliated CommUnityCare system of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC), will be renovated to allow for the capacity increase. The renovations will make much more efficient use of the space, allowing for the addition of 4 providers and 16 staff members. The projects will be 100 percent funded with federal funds.
More than 20 percent of Travis County residents are without health coverage. Due to the declining national economy, the overall situation is worsening and more working families will soon be facing hard decisions regarding their health care. Expanding access to care as a result of this funding will provide a significant boost to the District’s and CommUnityCare’s ability to facilitate that care.
“The awarding of federal stimulus funds will help address a significant need to increase services to the medically underserved in our community in these tough economic times,” Travis County Healthcare District President and CEO Patricia Young Brown said. “The renovations will allow for an increase in providers and staff to serve more patients, extend hours and expand programs. An added side benefit will be that construction jobs will be created when more than 17,000 square feet of space is renovated,” she added.
“When construction is complete, it will allow us to provide care to an additional 5,720 patients each year,” CommUnityCare CEO David B. Vliet explained. “In addition, we will be able to add pregnancy and parenting programs to both locations, and diabetes education programs to South Austin,” he added. “We are looking forward to putting these dollars to work to enhance the care that we provide,” Vliet said.
The funding is provided through the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) and supports construction, renovation and repair of more than 1,500 health centers nationwide in order to enhance access to health care for millions of Americans. The Travis County Healthcare District and CommUnityCare jointly hold the Federally Qualified Health Center status, which brings nearly $15 million in additional federal funds to provide healthcare services for the uninsured in our community.