[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 4685]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             CONTINUE FUNDING FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

  (Ms. HIRONO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. HIRONO. Last week, when most of us were in our respective 
districts, representatives from community health centers around the 
country came to Capitol Hill to remind us of the essential role they 
play in our communities. I hope that the staff of Members who voted for 
H.R. 1, which drastically cuts funding for these very health centers, 
listen to the stories they heard last week.
  I have long supported community health centers because in my 
district, spread over seven inhabited islands, access to care is a 
challenge. Although their principal focus has been to provide health 
care for the underserved, these centers serve people at all income 
levels.
  Hawaii's network of community health centers serve nearly 127,000 
patients, and only one-third of them are Medicaid eligible. On the 
island of Lanai, 40 percent of the residents receive care through their 
community health center. This population, 25 percent of which are over 
65 years of age, can't afford to fly to another island for care.
  Funding for community health centers is an investment because 
prevention is more cost effective than treatment. I urge my colleagues 
to reject cuts to community health centers.

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