HB 367 – Community Health Centers Grant Program/Funds
Primary Sponsors: Rep. Josh Dobson (R- Avery), Rep. Michelle Presnell (R – Madison), Rep. Johnathan Jordan (R – Ashe)
This bill would appropriate funds to the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Office of Rural Health, for the Community Health Centers Grant Program. Specifically, this would appropriate $7.5 million for the 2017-2018 fiscal year and $7.5million for the 2018-2019 fiscal year. The funds would be awarded based on a competitive basis to free clinics, federally qualified health centers, state-designated rural health centers, local health departments, school based health centers and other non-profit organizations with at least an 80 percent population of patients who are uninsured or who receive Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
The Office of Rural Health would make the final decision about awarding grants funded by this section. No single award could be more than $150,000.
All recipients of this grant would be required to report health outcomes to the Office of Rural Health.