[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27826]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CLINICS

  (Mrs. CAPPS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remind my colleagues of just 
one of the essential programs included in the Affordable Health Care 
for America Act. This bill includes the first dedicated Federal funding 
for school-based health clinics. School-based clinics garner strong 
bipartisan support, and this provision is one of the many bipartisan 
initiatives included in our health reform legislation. Today clinics in 
our schools are providing comprehensive and easily accessible health 
care to nearly 2 million students across the country.
  Students spend 5 days a week in school. It's the most logical place 
to offer primary and preventive care. Without this legislation, some 
students may have no access to health education, screenings and other 
primary services. At the height of the flu season, there is a need for 
supporting these clinics, these school-based health clinics, now more 
than ever. This is just one more reason of why I urge my colleagues to 
help pass real health reform now.

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