II Calendar No. 638 109th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3771 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 25, 2006 Mr. Hatch (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Burr, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Bond, Ms. Mikulski, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Talent, Mr. Bingaman, Ms. Collins, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Chafee, Mr. Reed, Mr. Smith, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Sununu, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Boxer, Ms. Landrieu, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Salazar, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Akaka, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Obama, Mr. Domenici, Mr. Bayh, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Lautenberg, Mr. Schumer, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Ensign, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Warner, Mr. Allen, Mr. Craig, Mr. Burns, Mr. Levin, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Pryor, Mr. Carper, Mr. Voinovich, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. Thune, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Roberts, and Mr. Enzi) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions September 25, 2006 Reported by Mr. Enzi, with an amendment Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic A BILL To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide additional authorizations of appropriations for the health centers program under section 330 of such Act.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Health Centers Renewal Act of 2006.

2.

Findings

Congress finds as follows: (1)Community, migrant, public housing, and homeless health centers are vital to thousands of communities across the United States. (2)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 Puerto Rico, Guam, the Virgin Islands, and other territories of the United States. (3)Health centers provide cost-effective, quality health care to poor and medically underserved people in the States, the District of Columbia, and the territories, including the working poor, the uninsured, and many high-risk and vulnerable populations, and have done so for over 40 years. (4)Health centers provide care to 1 of every 8 uninsured Americans, 1 of every 4 Americans in poverty, and 1 of every 9 rural Americans. (5)Health centers provide primary and preventive care services to more than 700,000 homeless persons and more than 725,000 farm workers in the United States. (6)Health centers are community-oriented and patient-focused 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. (7)Health centers are built through community initiative. (8)Health centers encourage citizen participation and provide jobs for 50,000 community residents. (9)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. (10)Federal grants assist participating communities in finding partners and recruiting doctors and other health professionals. (11)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. (12)Health centers make health care responsive and cost-effective through aggressive outreach, patient education, translation, and other enabling support services. (13)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. (14)Health centers increase the use of preventive health services, including immunizations, pap smears, mammograms, and HBa1c tests for diabetes screenings. (15)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.

3.

Additional authorizations of appropriations for health centers program of Public Health Service Act

Section 330(r) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254b(r)) is amended by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: (1)

In general

For the purpose of carrying out this section, in addition to the amounts authorized to be appropriated under subsection (d), there are authorized to be appropriated $1,963,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 2011. .

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Health Centers Renewal Act of 2006.

2.

Additional authorizations of appropriations for health centers program of Public Health Service Act

Section 330(r) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254b(r)) is amended by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows: (1)

In general

For the purpose of carrying out this section, in addition to the amounts authorized to be appropriated under subsection (d), there are authorized to be appropriated $1,963,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 and $2,080,000,000 for fiscal year 2008. .

September 25, 2006 Reported with an amendment