Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center to Use Stimulus Funds to See More Patients
March 20th, 2009
Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center will receive nearly $400,000 in federal stimulus funds and will use the money to expand access to primary care and increase capacity to provide services to the uninsured.
About 25 new patients a week have been registering at the Health Center, which serves 29,000 people from 125 towns in Connecticut. Many of the new patients are uninsured.
The funds come through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, signed into law on February 17, 2009. CS-HHC was given one week to prepare its application, which was submitted electronically on Monday, March 16.
The Center's Convenient Care Department will add 18 hours a week to meet demand for walk-in services. Overall each year patients make more than 180,000 visits to the Center's 18 sites.
The Center will also increase outreach to the newly unemployed, veterans, the uninsured, the underinsured, the homeless and public housing residents. The Center will work with the State Department of Labor to inform the newly unemployed about its services and sliding fee scale, which reduces charges for people with no health insurance.
The increase in demand for health care from the unemployed and uninsured comes at a time when there is a shortage of primary care providers. Thus, the Center's application includes an incentive plan to help with retaining staff.
The federal funds to be awarded to the Center - $398,511 - were allocated by a formula, which takes into account the total number of patients and the number of uninsured patients served by each health center. About 25% of the Center's 29,000 patients are uninsured.
The Center has also submitted to the government a list of capital projects totaling nearly $25 million. Another part of the stimulus plan allocated $2 billion to community health centers throughout the nation for capital projects. The Center's list includes renovation of its main offices on Columbus Avenue, a new building for specialty care and increased parking capacity.
Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA or Recovery Act), signed into law on February 17, 2009, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) will award up to $340 million through formula allocation grants for one-time Increased Demand for Services (IDS) funding in fiscal year 2009 to support existing health centers. IDS grant funding will be provided under a 2-year project period. As one-time awards, there is no expectation for ongoing support of IDS activities after the end of the 2-year project period.
IDS funding has been allocated by a formula, which takes into account the total number of patients and the number of uninsured patients served by each health center organization. Analysis of your most recent Uniform Data System (UDS) submission indicates you (Grantee: Cornell Scott-Hill Health Corporation, CT with Grant Number: H80CS00312) are eligible to request a maximum amount of $398,511.00. [If you do not have a UDS submission for Calendar Years 2007 or 2008, your maximum amount is the base allocation.] To request your IDS funds, you must submit an application through HRSA's Electronic Handbooks (EHBs). The IDS application in EHBs requires the following eligibility code to be entered: 3578.