[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 85 (Tuesday, June 27, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1286]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   HEALTH CENTERS RENEWAL ACT OF 2006

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. MICHAEL E. CAPUANO

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 21, 2006

  Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5573, the 
Health Centers Renewal Act of 2006. This legislation is an important 
first step towards a straight reauthorization of the community health 
centers program. As we all know, community health centers are the 
backbone of our Nation's health care safety net, providing quality, 
affordable primary I health care to over 15 million people across the 
country. There is overwhelming, bipartisan support for the community 
health centers program because the evidence of its I success is 
undeniable. Health centers are efficient, locally controlled, and 
provide a high standard of care: simply put, they work.
  In my District, the eighth district of Massachusetts, community 
health centers are not only essential to providing access to excellent 
health care in many of the neighborhoods I represent, but they are also 
pillars of the communities they serve. The community board, a majority 
of which is comprised of patients that the health center serves, is an 
essential part of keeping individual health centers inextricably linked 
to the community and its needs. It is significant that the bill before 
the House recognizes the unique, consumer-driven nature of the health 
centers model that has worked so well for many years. This fundamental 
structure of the health centers program must be maintained to ensure 
that the widely acknowledged success of the program continues.
  The bill before the House authorizes appropriations for fiscal year 
2007 at the same level as proposed by the President in his budget. This 
is a promising first step that echoes the amount authorized for fiscal 
year 2007 in H.R. 5201, legislation offered by my fellow cochair of the 
Community Health Centers Caucus, the gentleman from Florida, Mr. 
Bilirakis. However, that legislation, which I have cosponsored along 
with 233 Members of the House, would authorize such sums as necessary 
for fiscal years 2008-2011. The legislation we are considering today 
authorizes a specific dollar amount for each of those years, and I am 
concerned that the amounts in the bill may not take into account the 
costs of both the President's plan to expand health centers to every 
poor county in the Nation and the growing demands placed on existing 
health centers due to the increasing numbers of uninsured or 
underinsured, coupled with rising costs of providing medical care.
  As the reauthorization moves forward, I hope that we can all remember 
those health centers in our districts who serve everyone who walks 
through their doors, regardless of ability to pay. They do 
extraordinary work, and we have an obligation to ensure that they have 
sufficient resources to continue to fulfill their essential role in our 
Nation's health care safety net.

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