Congressman Welcomes HHS Regional Director Torres As Local Leaders and Practitioners Meet to Discuss Community Health Needs
NEW YORK – Congressman Charles B. Rangel praised the work of community health centers in meeting the needs of constituents as he welcomed Health and Human Services Regional Director Dr. Jaime R. Torres for a discussion regarding the health needs of the 15th Congressional District.
The forum, organized by the Congressman with Community boards 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and a coalition of seven community health centers, was held September 7 at the William F. Ryan Center’s new Women and Children's Health Center , at 801 Amsterdam Avenue , Upper West Side.
"There is something magical about our community health centers and the care they provide,” said Rangel. “The close relationship of clinic doctors have with their patients is contagious, one that is a significant part of their training, as important as medical knowledge they learned in the classroom.”
Dr. Torres, joined by a team from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), helped explain recent health care legislation signed earlier this year by President Barack Obama and what the timetable would mean for both residents and medical institutions.
They explained that The Affordable Care Act will provide a total of $11 billion to bolster and expand community health centers over the next five years, with $ 1.5 billion alone going to support construction and renovation projects. A majority of the new funding – about $9.5 billion - will create new sites, as well as expand preventive and primary health care services. This fiscal year alone, $250 million will be made available to help establish 350 new community health center sites over the next fiscal year.
“They always manage to do so much with so little, but we are now going to provide full resources for them,” said Rangel.
Among those attending the forum were Community Health Network President & CEO Catherine Abate; Harlem United President & CEO Patrick Mc Govern; Institute for Family Health President & CEO Neil Kalman; Settlement Health President & CEO Renaldo Gonzalez; Boriken Neighborhood Center President & CEO Ellie Sanchez; William F. Ryan Center President & CEO Barbra Minch and Heritage Health Center President & CEO Coleen Lewis. Barbra Van Buren, Madge Rosenberg Penny Ryan, Pat Jones, Georgette Morgan Thomas, Hazel Dukes, Frac Perry, Mathew Washington, David Giordano, Pamela North and Steve Simon were just some of the health committee members of the various community boards that also attended.
“Community health centers provide the highest quality of care to our city’s and to our country’s medically underserved populations, often regardless of their ability to pay. In this time of economic uncertainties, we are pleased that Washington recognizes the important role played by providers like the William F. Ryan Community Health Network for those who are uninsured, underinsured or insured,” said Minch. 
For Dr. Torres and his team, the meeting was a chance to update community leaders on what federal money was coming down the pipeline, as well as see what Administration officials could do about the concerns that leaders in the field anticipated. Questions centered on everything from how to deal with the uninsured to how to create an atmosphere were future doctors can learn about Medicare, Medicaid and other government services that they did not learn about in medical school.
"This as a great opportunity to listen to the people on the front lines of healthcare," said Dr. Torres, who served as the Associate Director of Consultative Services at New York City’s Health and Hospital Corporation’s Coler-Goldwater Specialty Hospital and Nursing Facility just prior to being appointed Region II Director this past spring. "I believe we were able to pass along some useful information, clear up some questions and provide some insight as to what they can expect in terms of future resources. I look forward to continuing this dialogue and coming back real soon to check up on our progress and see what we can do to further help the community."
Rangel said that with federal health officials like Dr. Torres at the helm, a former president of Latinos for National health Insurance, he was enthusiastic that the government would be working hard to ensure that the new law works for everyone.
"We must all take advantage of this once in a lifetime president, President Obama, who has provided so much for the health of our community, said Rangel. “I am so glad that we have Dr. Jaime Torres as the new HHS Regional Director, someone who is from our community and knows the issues that doctors and patients are facing not just from an academic standpoint, but also from a personal and practical perspective.”
CHCs: A MAJOR PART OF THE HEALTH DELIVERY SYSTEM
Today more than 1,100 community health centers operate in 7,900 service delivery sites throughout the United States. Community health centers supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) treated more than 19 million people in 2009, more than half of who were members of racial or ethnic minority groups. One out of every 17 people living in the U.S. relies on HRSA-funded clinics. Community health centers employ more than 9100 physicians and 5700 nurses.
In 2009, Rangel led the way in getting Congress to provide 2.1 billion to help expand existing community health care centers as well as create new centers in underserved communities. The National Health Services Corp. also received additional funding to provide much-needed primary care physicians and medical staff in underserved communities, allowing centers across the nation to serve 1.8 million new patients.
"These community health care centers are really pioneers as to what health care should be about," said Rangel. "It's not just about cutting costs, but providing services that offer quality treatment and prevention."
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