HHS awards $260M to build and renovate health centers

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced 290 health centers around the U.S. will receive more than $260 million in funding to build new facilities or expand existing structures.

The money comes from the Community Health Center Fund, first established by the Affordable Care Act and extended by the passing of the 2015 Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). The total amount of the awarded funding represents a significant increase from the $150 million for facility renovation and construction announced in September 2015 and the $101 million handed out in May 2015.

“Health centers are cornerstones of the communities they serve,” said HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell in a statement. “Today’s awards will empower health centers to build more capacity and provide needed healthcare to hundreds of thousands of additional individuals and their families.”

Funding construction and expansion is intended to help health centers keep up with the demand for more physical space at health facilities as more people become insured. HHS said these awards will allow centers to provide care for 800,000 additional patients.

The money will be distributed to facilities in 45 states, along with the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, with no single center receiving more than $1 million. California is receiving both the most individual awards and the greatest amount of overall funding, with 40 facilities getting more than $36.8 milllion.

No facilities in Delaware, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota or Wyoming are included on the awards list.

A state-by-state listing is available on the HHS site.