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| by Lou Ann Wilroy, CEO |
The article focuses on the eight urban Community Health Centers owned by Denver Health. There are many Community Health Centers (also known as Federally Qualified Health Centers - FQHCs) in our urban and rural areas and they are quite deserving of appreciation and concern for the burdens they face trying to accommodate uninsured and underinsured patients, and the growing number of newly insured in search of medical homes. However, at CRHC we are acutely aware that the state’s safety net facilities that run from border-to-border come in all shapes and sizes and, unlike the federally-qualified urban centers that were the focus of this article, do not have the federal qualification that entitles them to increased funding levels.
As health reform implementation begins to provide coverage to more Coloradans, “non-federally qualified” providers such as Rural Health Clinics and Community-Funded Safety Net Clinics are going to be even more challenged to meet the needs of their growing patient populations. As mentioned in the Denver Post article, FQHCs such as those operated by Denver Health, often have long waiting lists. When these lists get lengthy, patients in need understandably migrate to other safety net facilities. This includes family medicine residency training programs, faith-based clinics, free clinics, and Rural Health Clinics with a variety of ownership structures such as privately owned, county owned, or governed by a special district.
These different types of safety net facilities are extremely important in serving across Colorado’s diverse geographic and cultural landscape. The FQHC model is not a fit for every community. The federal regulations can be daunting, if not impossible, to comply with in some cases, especially in isolated rural and frontier communities. It is extremely important for communities to become educated on the different options for delivering primary care and strategize to best meet the needs of the population. Recently, the Health Resources and Services Administration released a new funding opportunity for creating new FQHC access points. Interested community leaders and healthcare facilities should contact CRHC to explore the feasibility of applying for this funding. We are making every effort to collaborate with the Colorado Community Health Network, Colorado’s Primary Care Association, to identify opportunities.
Additionally, CRHC is continuing to actively advocate at the state and national levels for increased funding and additional resources and support for the non-FQHC safety net clinics that are extremely crucial components of the healthcare infrastructure.
