STATEMENT OF TOM VAN COVERDEN ON THE INTRODUCTION OF MAJORITY LEADER REID’S MANAGER’S AMENDMENT
America’s Community Health Centers appreciate the commitment and extraordinary work from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and his leadership team to advance national health reform toward final Senate approval. Majority Leader Reid’s manager’s amendment, introduced today, incorporates several key provisions that will further strengthen the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act under consideration by the Senate. NACHC continues to support the Senate health reform bill, and the inclusion of the manager’s amendment will further improve access to affordable, quality health care for the newly insured and low-income, underserved individuals.
Health Centers particularly appreciate several provisions that will have a major impact on health centers across the country. Due to the extraordinary efforts of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, the manager’s amendment includes a direct investment of $10 billion for health centers and the National Health Service Corps, including $1.5 billion for health center construction. This direct funding, a new and guaranteed stream over the next five years, will ensure that health centers are available to serve millions of additional patients in need.
The manager’s amendment also restores a provision that protects health center payments within the new Health Insurance Exchange, ensuring health centers are paid reliably and adequately for providing a health care home to millions of newly insured patients. Finally, the manager’s amendment improves health center payments in Medicare, eliminating caps and screens and updating the Medicare covered services to include preventive services – critically important as health centers’ Medicare population continues to grow.
We especially appreciate the strong leadership of the Majority Leader and of Majority Whip Richard Durbin, Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, Banking Committee Chair Chris Dodd, HELP Committee Chair Tom Harkin, Senators Bernie Sanders, Robert Menendez, Jeff Bingaman, Debbie Stabenow, and others who have been champions for Community Health Centers in health reform.
We look forward to continuing to work with these leaders to ensure that the promise of new and expanded coverage turns into the reality of quality health care and improved health for the millions of Americans who will benefit from this historic reform.
