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"By expanding services at these health centers, we are strengthening the health care safety net for people without health insurance and others living where health care providers remain scarce," Secretary Thompson said. "Community-based health centers are the backbone of our nation's health care safety net, and we are committed to doubling the number of patients they serve."

Today's awards represent the third round of expansion grants this year under the Bush administration's long-term plan to add 1,200 new and expanded health center sites over five years and ultimately double the number of patients treated at them. For fiscal year 2003, the President's budget requests $1.5 billion for health centers -- a $114 million increase that would provide services to a million additional patients. Nearly half of the patients treated at health centers have no insurance coverage, and many others have inadequate coverage.

Today's grants are part of the Consolidated Health Center Program, which funds a national network of community health centers, migrant health centers, health care for the homeless centers, public housing primary care centers and school-based health centers. HHS' Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) oversees the program.

Community health centers, the largest part of the program, received 21 of the grants announced today. The other awards include:

• two Health Care for the Homeless grants to support critical services for over 4,700 homeless individuals and families;
• two Public Housing Primary Care Program grants, which will provide primary care, mental health, oral health and outreach services to 6,700 residents of public housing; and
• three Healthy Schools, Healthy Communities Program grants to support full-service school-based health centers that provide access to comprehensive primary health care services, including mental and oral health services, to 12,400 students and their families.

A fourth and final round of fiscal year 2002 health center grants is expected to be announced this summer. Once completed, HHS will have invested $165 million this year in 260 new and expanded health centers capable of serving an additional 1.25 million people.

The list of today's grant recipients is available at newsroom.hrsa.gov/releases/2002releases/thirdround.htm.

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