Amata says U.S. House passage of Health Centers Renewal Act of 2006 should benefit American Samoa
June 23, 2006

Amata Aumua reports that the U.S. House of Representatives Wednesday
night passed the Health Centers Renewal Act of 2006 which represents a
straight reauthorization of the Public Health Service Act to provide
additional authorizations of appropriations for the health centers program.

Said Amata, "Community health centers are vital to thousands of
communities
across the United States. There are more than 1,000 such health centers
serving over 15,000,000 people at over 3,700 health delivery sites, located
in all 50 States of the United States, the District of Columbia, and the U.S.
territories. While American Samoa is not specifically mentioned in the
legislation, unlike Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands which are
actually mentioned in the bill, I would be extremely disappointed if our
Territory was left out. Health centers provide cost-effective, quality
health care to medically underserved people, including to 1 of every 8
uninsured Americans."

"Health centers are community-oriented and patient-focused," said Amata,
"and tailor their services to fit the special needs and priorities of local
communities, working together with schools, businesses, churches,
community organizations, foundations, and State and local governments. Health centers are built through community initiative. Health centers encourage citizen
participation and provide jobs for 50,000 community residents. Congress
established the program as a unique public-private partnership, and has
continued to provide direct funding to community organizations for the
development and operation of health centers systems that address pressing
local health needs and meet national performance standards.

According to Amata, federal grants assist participating communities in
finding partners and recruiting doctors and other health professionals.
Federal grants constitute, on average, 24 percent of the annual budget of
such health centers, with the remainder provided by State and local
governments, Medicare, Medicaid, private contributions, private insurance,
and patient fees.

Amata concluded by saying, "Health centers make health care responsive and
cost-effective through aggressive outreach, patient education, translation,
and other enabling support services. Health centers help reduce health
disparities, meet escalating health care needs, and provide a vital safety
net in the health care delivery system of the United States. Health centers
increase the use of preventive health services, including immunizations, pap
smears, mammograms, and HBa1c tests for diabetes screenings. Expert
studies have demonstrated the impact that these community-owned and
patient-controlled primary care delivery systems have achieved both in the
reduction of traditional access barriers and the elimination of health
disparities among their patients."