Today, NACHC President and CEO Kyu Rhee, MD, sent a letter to congressional leadership urging them to include a short-term extension of funding for the Community Health Center, the National Health Service Corps, and the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education programs in the next Continuing Resolution (CR).
Government Funding Will Expire on November 17th
A short-term extension would prevent any disruption to these essential programs’ funding and give Congress more time to agree on a path forward for a long-term solution that provides increased funding and greater stability to the three programs.
Currently, government funding is scheduled to expire on November 17th and it’s highly unlikely the House and Senate will be able to finish the appropriations process before then. In this situation, Congress usually passes a Continuing Resolution (CR) to prevent a shutdown and allow more time for negotiations to continue. NACHC is very appreciative that Congress included a short-term extension for health centers and primary care workforce programs in September’s CR, but now Congress must act again to prevent any disruption to these essential programs’ funding after the November 17th deadline.
In his letter to leadership today, Dr. Rhee wrote:
“On behalf of the 1,487 health centers across the country, I write to ask that Congress include a short-term extension of the Community Health Center Fund, the National Health Service Corps, and the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program in any upcoming Continuing Resolution. A short-term extension of these essential programs will provide health centers additional stability as they meet their communities’ primary care needs. It will also give Congress more time to build consensus around a long-term extension at the highest possible funding level for all three programs.”
The letter continues, “Health centers are proud of the nearly sixty years of bipartisan support for their mission of providing care to underserved communities, and we look forward to working with you to secure long-term, stable, and increased funding for Community Health Centers and their workforce as soon as possible.”
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