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  • Community Health Centers’ Role in Delivering Care to the Nation’s Underserved Populations During the Coronavirus Pandemic

    Issue Brief

    In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, community health centers are serving as public health responders, especially for medically underserved populations. Health centers are a national network of safety net primary care providers who provided care to nearly 30 million patients in 2019, and disproportionately serve patients who are low-income, persons of color, uninsured, or publicly insured – groups that have been especially hard hit by the pandemic. This brief examines how health centers have adapted their service delivery models during the pandemic response and the current challenges they face continuing to meet patients’ needs.

  • Impact of Shifting Immigration Policy on Medicaid Enrollment and Utilization of Care among Health Center Patients

    Issue Brief

    On August 14, 2019, the Trump administration published a final rule to broaden the programs the federal government will consider in public charge determinations to include Medicaid coverage for non-pregnant adults and certain previously excluded nutrition and housing programs. To learn about the possible early effects of the public charge rule and other immigration policies on patients at community health centers, this brief draws on interviews and survey data to capture health center directors’ and staff’s perceptions of changes in coverage and service use among their patients who are immigrants.

  • How Are Health Centers Responding to the Funding Delay?

    Fact Sheet

    Community health centers see over 25 million patients in medically underserved rural and urban areas throughout the country. A key source of their federal funding expired September 30, 2017. This fact sheet looks at how health centers are responding to the funding delay and uncertainty.

  • The Health Center COVID-19 Vaccination Program is Prioritizing Hard-to-Reach Communities

    Policy Watch

    As part of the Biden administration’s plans to facilitate more equitable access to vaccinations, the administration has formed a partnership with community health centers, known for providing health care to some of the hardest-to-reach populations. This Policy Watch post examines the initial group of health centers to participate early in the Health Center Vaccination Program and the patient populations they serve.

  • Community Health Centers Are A Key Source of COVID-19 Rapid At-Home Self-Tests For Hard-To-Reach Groups

    Policy Watch

    As part of an effort to promote equitable access to tests, the Biden administration launched a testing supply program that has set aside 25 million rapid at-home self-test kits for distribution by community health centers. Under the program, health centers will be distributing self-tests to patients and community members, with a focus on populations at greatest risk from adverse outcomes related to COVID-19.

  • Community Health Center Patients, Financing, and Services

    Issue Brief

    This brief reports on community health center patients, services, experiences, and financing in 2023 and analyzes changes from 2019 (pre-pandemic) through 2023 using data from the Uniform Data System (UDS) and the 2022 Health Center Patient Survey.

  • Community Health Centers Are Taking Actions to Prepare for the Unwinding of the Public Health Emergency

    Policy Watch

    Community health centers, a national network of safety-net primary care providers, are poised to be on the front lines of the unwinding of the Medicaid continuous enrollment requirement when the public health emergency (PHE) ends. Health centers can be effective in raising awareness about Medicaid renewal requirements and in providing the help needed for enrollees to maintain Medicaid or transition to other coverage.

  • Community Health Centers Prepare for Funding Uncertainty

    Issue Brief

    With the Community Health Center Fund, a key source of federal funding, set to expire in September, community health centers across the country are considering steps to reduce staffing, close some locations and eliminate or reduce services as they cope with uncertainty about their future financing.

  • Community Health Centers in a Time of Change: Results from an Annual Survey

    Issue Brief

    With health centers playing an important role in the response to the coronavirus pandemic, findings from the KFF/Geiger Gibson 2019 Community Health Center Survey provide important information on health centers’ financial situation and their experiences in a changing policy environment. After years of growth following implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), changes in Medicaid, public charge, and Title X family planning policies, among others, carry important implications for low-income patients as well as health center operations and revenue.