To help expand the capacity of community health centers serving our communities, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor announced that 46 centers in Florida will receive $4.4 million in federal grant awards.

“These outreach grants will create employment in Tampa Bay and assist our community health centers in their effort to enroll uninsured Americans in the new health insurance coverage options made available by the Affordable Care Act,” Rep. Castor said. 

“This grant will allow us to hire extra people and we should see significant increases in enrollment,” said Charlie Bottoms, CEO of Tampa Family Health Centers, Inc., which will receive $240,908 from the grant. Community Health Centers of Pinellas, Inc. will receive $177,974; Pinellas County will receive $35,458; and Suncoast Community Health Centers, Inc. (in Ruskin) will receive $148,480. A complete list of all of Florida’s grantees is available here:  www.hrsa.gov/about/news/2013tables/outreachandenrollment/

“Despite Florida Republican legislators blocking the implementation of the Affordable Care Act at nearly every turn, these grants will allow health centers to meet the immediate needs of their enrollment efforts, including expanding the hours of existing outreach and enrollment assistance workers, and hiring new or temporary outreach and enrollment assistance workers.” 

These grants build upon the Affordable Care Act’s $8.1 million invested earlier this year into Florida’s health centers.

“With nearly 4 million Floridians who are uninsured and millions more who stand to benefit from the patient protections of the Affordable Care Act, community health centers are undertaking a large role in not only assisting with enrollment but also educating neighbors interested in learning about their health care rights,” Rep. Castor said. “Our neighbors turn to these community health centers as a trusted and familiar resource to provide face-to-face assistance with health care options.” 

Florida has 48 health centers with 410 sites that served 1.1 million patients last year.

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