After lawmakers struck a deal on legislation (S. 1533) to reauthorize community health centers and the National Health Service Corps for five years, Congress cleared the measure for the President’s signature. The House approved the bill by a vote of 392-5 on October 16. The Senate followed suit the next day, passing the measure by voice vote.
Sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Reps. Michael Bilirakis (R-FL) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH), the measure expands the primary health care services provided through community health centers to include “appropriate cancer screening,” specialty referral when medically indicated, housing-related services, and behavioral and mental health and substance abuse services. Funding for the centers is increased to $1.34 billion in FY2002 and such sums as necessary are authorized in FY2003 through FY2006. Last year, community health centers received $802 million.
The legislation creates a Community Access Demonstration Program to help states and localities coordinate services for the uninsured and underinsured. Such sums as necessary are authorized for the program.
Additionally, the bill establishes a grant program designed to improve the quality of health care in rural areas and another grant program to provide telehealth programs and telehealth resource centers. The rural health grant program is authorized at $40 million in FY2002, and the telehealth programs are authorized at $60 million. Such sums as necessary are authorized for both programs in FY2003 through FY2006.
The bill also authorizes $50 million over five years for a grant program to address the dental health professionals shortage. States may receive funds to implement loan forgiveness programs for dentists who agree to practice in designated shortage areas, to serve as public health dentists for the federal, state, or local government, to provide services regardless of a patient’s ability to pay, and to use a sliding payment scale.
Grants may also be used for a variety of other programs, including dental recruitment and retention efforts, grants and low-interest or no-interest loans to help dentists who participate in Medicaid to expand or establish services in shortage areas, the establishment or expansion of dental residency programs in states without dental schools, and the expansion or establishment of oral health services and facilities in shortage areas.
The House approved a similar version of the bill (H.R. 3450) on October 1 (see The Source, 10/4/02), while the Senate initially passed its bill (S. 1533) on April 16 (see The Source, 4/19/02).
