Project will Boost Energy Resilience at Rural Community Health Centers in the Southeast
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Amy Simmons Farber 202-309-0338
Bethesda, MD–The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), Capital Link, Collective Energy, and Clean Energy Group are one of 17 projects selected for award negotiations with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) for Energy Improvements in Remote or Rural Areas (ERA). The award negotiation of up to $57 million will go towards strengthening the energy resilience of Community Health Centers in the rural Southeast so they can continue delivering vital services during power outages. View the 17 projects selected for award negotiation here.
46 million Americans live in rural areas and face numerous health inequities when compared to people who live in urban centers. Rural Americans are more likely to die from several chronic conditions and unintentional injuries, which are approximately 50% higher than in urban areas.1 In 2022, rural areas of the Southeast experienced 474 weather-related power outages–the highest number of any other US region.2 With a changing climate, extreme weather events are only expected to increase, leading to more power outages that can significantly harm human health by exacerbating emergency room visits, injuries, mental health issues, consumption of unsafe food and water, and limiting abilities to charge medical devices.3 Economically marginalized communities and people of color are hit the hardest by power outages and climate-driven weather events. Health centers are increasingly the first responders and epicenters of recovery efforts during extreme weather events. The ERA project will provide solar, battery storage systems, and microgrid capabilities for up to 175 Community Health Centers located in rural communities with less than 10,000 residents within the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Region IV – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. As of June 2023, there were 783 permanent rural community health center sites overseen by 169 different organizations located in this region. Of the 783 sites, 636 (81%) were designated as disadvantaged (Justice40 communities)4 and 275 (35%) were in Energy Communities5 that have historically been located near environmentally harmful industries (e.g., mines, oil extraction, etc.).
“As the largest primary care network in the nation, Community Health Centers serve one in three people living in poverty, many in communities most impacted by environmental and climate hazards,” said Kyu Rhee, MD, MPP, President and CEO of NACHC. “Weather related power outages shut down critical health services at health centers, increasing the risk of avoidable hospitalizations and financial hardship for low-income residents. Our CHARGE Partnership with Capital Link, Collective Energy, and Clean Energy Group brings unique skills needed to develop resilient clean energy solutions to health centers. The ERA funding is a game-changer for building resilience in rural areas where health disparities, generational poverty, historic discrimination, and environmental justice intersect.”
“The ERA funding is a game-changer for building resilience in rural areas where health disparities, generational poverty, historic discrimination, and environmental justice intersect.”
Dr. Kyu Rhee, MD, MPP
NACHC President and CEO
The ERA project builds on the groundwork laid by NACHC, Capital Link, Collective Energy, and Clean Energy Group as part of the CHARGE Partnership that has already provided education about the benefits of resilient power and designed solar+storage systems for hundreds of health centers across the country.
The initial site for this project is in Tunica, Mississippi in partnership with Aaron E. Henry Community Health Center, which will incorporate additional community and workforce initiatives. Participating health centers could save up to $45 million in energy costs, avoid millions in losses due to closures, decrease greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 325 million tons, and create a scalable, replicable model for remote health care providers, strengthening the resilience of vulnerable communities across the country.6
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NACHC is the leading innovative change agent collaborating with affiliates and partners to advance Community Health Centers as the foundation of an equitable health care system free from disparities, and built on accessible, patient-governed, high-quality, integrated primary care.
1 CDC, (2023). About Rural Health.
2 Climate Central, (Accessed February 2024). Surging Weather-related Power Outages.
3 Andresen et al. (2023). Understanding the social impacts of power outages in North America: A systematic review. Environmental Research Letters.
4 Council on Environmental Quality, (2022). Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool.
5 Department of Energy, (2023). Energy Community Tax Credit Bonus.
6 These figures are Project Partner estimates based on a sample of Photovoltaic system size, utility savings, and electrical bill savings at health centers in the rural US Southeast.