TRENTON — Twenty New Jersey community health centers will receive about $50 million in federal funding as part of the Affordable Care Act. The funds will allow construction and renovation at the federally qualified community facilities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced today. The 20 sites are located mostly in New Jersey’s cities, and will focus on...
TRENTON — Twenty New Jersey community health centers will receive about $50 million in federal funding as part of the Affordable Care Act.
The funds will allow construction and renovation at the federally qualified community facilities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced today.
The 20 sites are located mostly in New Jersey’s cities, and will focus on expanding capacity at existing sites.
Newark Community Health Centers received the most money, totaling roughly $7.7 million for doubling the size of a Newark facility and revamping an East Orange site, according to Peter Velez, the center’s president. Velez said the money would expand the kind of health coverage for an expected rise in the number of patients coinciding with health care reform.
"We’re seeing an increasing need," he said. "We’ve got to step forward."
Other grants included: Ocean Health Initiatives in Lakewood, to receive $5.8 million; Southern Jersey Family, expecting $5.5 million; and Newark City Health and Human Services, $5.5 million.
Under the new grant program, the Affordable Care Act will provide $727 million to 143 community health centers in the country. The centers serve nearly 19 million patients — about 40 percent of whom don’t have health insurance, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. The department also said a grand total of $11 billion will be made available for community health centers over the next five years — with an ultimate goal of doubling the numbers of patients they serve.
"These funds from the Affordable Care Act will help get more people care in some communities where there have not been many options in the past," said Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
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