United Medical Centers to Celebrate National Health Center Week
(Press Release) United Medical Centers in Eagle Pass will be celebrating National Health Center Week with a free health fair on Wednesday, August 16 at the Veterans Blvd. Clinic at 2525 N. Veterans Blvd. in Eagle Pass, Texas from 8am to 12pm. The fair will include health assessments, nutritional tips, a glucose test, blood pressure assessment, and height & weight assessment. Contact Jessika Ramirez at (830) 773-5358, ext. 288 for more information.
“National Health Center Week is a time to celebrate the work of the dedicated staff that provide care and the patients that make it their mission to address health needs. UMC is consistently working to service the needs of our community to provide quality and affordable healthcare with a patient-centered team.” -William Worrell
National Health Center Week, which runs from August 13-19, puts our Community Health Centers in the spotlight—and it’s a bright spot at that. Despite the struggle to arrive at health care legislation that all parties can agree on, the innovative, high-value Health Center model is one of our nation’s great health care success stories. Since their beginning more than 50 years ago, Health Centers have been a longstanding bipartisan solution to the primary care access problems facing this country.
Community Health Centers like United Medical Centers are part of a national network that serves as the “family doctor” to more than 25 million Americans. They provide primary care, dental, behavioral, pharmacy, vision, and a variety of complementary services to America’s most vulnerable patients and communities, and have generated compelling proof that affordable and accessible health care produces numerous benefits.
“As patient of United Medical Centers; I trust the staff and Providers with my family’s healthcare needs. Additionally, serving as UMC Board Chairman I know that we are making a difference in the community through quality healthcare and economic stimulus. – Jose De Luna
Also known as Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), they are highly efficient: the average annual cost per patient is only $764. In Texas, more than 76 FQHCs at 450 sites serve more than 1.2 million people, including 346,657 Medicaid patients—29% of all their patients. That means that 7.3% of all Medicaid beneficiaries make up only .72% of the state’s total Medicaid expenditures.
Today, well over 1,400 health center organizations serve more than 10,000 urban and rural communities nationwide. Health Centers are the health care home for more than 25 million patients, including more than 7.6 million children and nearly 300,000 veterans. Health centers employ more than 180,000 Americans, and generate billions of dollars both in economic impact and overall cost-savings to the health care system.
“With the challenges that Health Centers face today, we must make sure that everyone who is involved in health care in our communities understands that Health Centers deliver high quality, cost effective, accessible care while serving as economic engines helping to power local economies,” said José E. Camacho, executive director of Texas Association of Community Health Centers.
