[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 106 (Thursday, August 3, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Page S8828]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SMITH (for himself, Mr. Bingaman, and Ms. Murkowski):
  S. 3813. A bill to permit individuals who are employees of a grantee 
that is receiving funds under section 330 of the Public Health Service 
Act to enroll in health insurance coverage provided under the Federal 
Employees Health Benefits Program; to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Community Health 
Center Employee Health Coverage Act, a bill that will help provide 
community health centers, CHCs, better access to more affordable health 
insurance for their employees. I am pleased to have my colleagues 
Senators Bingaman and Murkowski join me as original cosponsors on this 
important proposal.
  CHCs form the backbone of the Nation's health care safety net. They 
provide essential medical services to some of our most vulnerable 
citizens, including the uninsured and Medicaid and Medicare 
beneficiaries. In my home State of Oregon, health centers provide over 
130 points of access, where upwards of 180,000 individuals receive care 
each year. Approximately 41 percent of those served are uninsured and 
36 percent are on Medicaid, and most all reside in either a rural or 
economically depressed area. Clearly, CHCs have an important role in 
ensuring that those who otherwise might be unable to afford health 
coverage have access to the care they need.
  CHCs also serve their patients in a very efficient manner. Studies 
have shown that care provided Medicaid patients at CHCs costs 30 
percent less than care provided in other settings. This is mainly due 
to a lower number of specialty referrals and fewer overall hospital 
admissions. CHCs effectively demonstrate how focusing on primary and 
preventive care can help keep individuals healthier, which ultimately 
enhances their lives and saves the broader health care system money. 
Above and beyond the efficiencies CHCs have achieved in service 
delivery, patients report overwhelming satisfaction for the treatment 
they are provided. Health care providers across the spectrum would be 
well-served by emulating CHCs' example of delivering affordable, high-
quality health care in an efficient manner.
  Given the enormous value CHCs have to the U.S. health care system, I 
believe Congress should do all it can to support their mission. I 
commend President Bush's commitment to increasing funding for health 
center expansion in recent years. I am pleased the administration's 
request for $180 million in new funding in fiscal year 2007 was 
included in the Senate's version of the budget resolution. As the 
appropriations process continues to move forward, I hope that those 
much-needed funds are ultimately approved by Congress.
  The bill I am filing today will compliment the increased funding CHCs 
have received in recent years. Just like businesses across the nation, 
health centers are coping with the rising cost of providing health 
benefits to their employees. Premiums for private health insurance grew 
by 9.5 percent in 2005--the fifth consecutive year of increases over 9 
percent. Because CHCs operate on very limited budgets, it has become 
more and more difficult for them to absorb these increased costs while 
continuing to provide affordable health care to their patients.
  It is important to note that CHCs rely upon the Federal Government 
for more than half of their operating revenues. Each year, health 
centers receive 26 percent of their funding from direct Federal grants 
and another 36 percent from the Medicaid Program. Because CHCs are 
predominantly a Federal enterprise, I believe it makes sense for them 
to be able to reap many of the same benefits of other Federal entities. 
That is why the bill I am filing today would allow CHCs to purchase 
more affordable health insurance coverage for their employees through 
the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program, FEHBP.
  Allowing federally funded entities to purchase health coverage 
through FEHBP is not unprecedented. Employees of Gallaudet University 
and certain U.S. Department of Agriculture grantees already are able to 
participate in FEHBP as if they were directly employed by the Federal 
Government. Considering that CHC providers are already deemed ``Federal 
employees'' for the purpose of receiving medical liability protection 
through the Federal Government, it is a logical next step to allow them 
to purchase health coverage through FEHBP. In doing so, we will be able 
to provide CHCs much needed security in knowing that their employees 
will have steady access to affordable health insurance.
  I believe that in the long run, CHCs will be able to achieve a great 
deal of savings by purchasing health coverage for their employees 
through FEHBP. Premiums for policies purchased through FEHBP 
consistently grow at a much slower rate than other commercial policies. 
Every dollar CHCs save in employee benefit costs can be redirected into 
medical care for the vulnerable populations they serve. Access to FEHBP 
coverage also may help some CHCs provide health benefits to their 
employees for the first time. This could help recruit much needed 
medical personnel in underserved and rural communities. I am hopeful 
health centers in rural parts of my State will be able to attract the 
physicians they so desperately need by offering them FEHBP coverage.
  There is wide support for CHCs in the Senate, as evidenced by the 
introduction of two other CHC-related measures this week. Senator 
Bingaman and I also are filing the Strengthen the Safety Net Act that 
will allocate unspent Medicaid disproportionate share hospital funds to 
CHCs and other community-based health care providers. And, I am joining 
a bipartisan group of my colleagues in introducing the CHC 
Reauthorization Act to ensure that CHCs can continue providing health 
care to some of our most vulnerable citizens for years to come. I hope 
the Senate's leadership will move this package of three bills quickly 
through the process, as a sign of appreciation for the important role 
CHCs play in the U.S. health care system.
                                 ______