ACCESS
- Health centers provide access to quality, cost-effective, affordable primary and preventive health care to all people who need it, regardless of ability to pay.
- Today, 60 million people in America – many of whom have health insurance – lack access to basic health care because they live in communities where there is an acute shortage of primary care providers.
QUALITY
- Health centers maintain a remarkable record of providing superior quality care, reducing health disparities, and saving money for taxpayers and insurers alike.
- Studies have found that the quality of care provided at health centers is equal to or greater than the quality of care provided elsewhere. Moreover, 99% of surveyed patients report that they were satisfied with the care they receive at health centers.
- Disparities in health status do not exist among health center patients, even after controlling for socio-demographic factors.
COST SAVINGS
- Health centers save the health care system up to $17.6 billion a year. These savings are the result of reduced reliance on costly specialty, inpatient, and emergency room care.
- An expansion of health centers will achieve cost-savings, plain and simple. A recent study by the George Washington University found that if the network of Community Health Centers were expanded to accommodate an additional 20 million patients, the result would be $212 billion in savings for the health care system over a ten-year period.
- Annual medical expenses for health center patients are 41 percent lower compared to patients seen elsewhere.
- Health centers reduce emergency room visits for their patients, particularly among the uninsured who live near a health center.
Talking points updated October 2009.
