Congresswoman Matsui Highlights How the Affordable Care Act's Critical Investments in Community Health Centers Are Helping Patients in California
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
CONTACT: JONELLE TRIMMER
(202) 225-7163
Congresswoman Matsui Highlights How the Affordable Care Act's Critical Investments in Community Health Centers Are Helping Patients in California
If health law was repealed it would mean rolling back the progress we've made on expanding access to care
Today, Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-06) highlighted how the Affordable Care Act's investments in California's community health centers are helping deliver higher-quality health care to more than 3 million Californians.
"In addition to expanding access to health insurance for millions of Americans, the Affordable Care Act strengthens our community health centers, providing them the tools they need to ensure the most vulnerable among us receive high-quality health care," said Congresswoman Matsui. "Here in Sacramento we have a strong network of safety net providers and I have been working closely with them to ensure they have the tools they need to be successful. The funding provided by the ACA helps these centers expand their capacity and provide quality care to Sacramentans across the region."
To help expand the capacity of health centers to serve communities across the country, the Affordable Care Act includes approximately $11 billion for efforts to strengthen and grow centers, including building new sites and renovating existing ones. Already, community health centesr in California have received more than $647 million in ACA funding for these purposes.
"As a community health center our mission is achieve regional health through high quality comprehensive care for anyone in the region who needs it. Oftentimes the individuals who need health care the most do not have insurance or a primary care doctor, and so they come to us for all their medical needs. The support provided by the Affordable Care Act has allowed us to hire additional staff, and provide care to more individuals in the Sacramento region. This allows us to better complete our mission and strengthens the health of our community," said Dr. Jonathan Porteus, CEO of WellSpace Health.
Today, approximately 1,200 health centers operate more than 9,000 sites that provide care to more than 21 million patients across the country. Community health centers are an integral source of local employment and economic growth in many communities, including the Sacramento region. Nationwide, they employ more than 148,000 workers and added more than 35,000 jobs over the last four years.
###