After digging a gold shovel into the ground and daintily tossing the heap of dirt onto a tiny mound, US Congresswoman, Kathy Castor, proclaimed, “ You earned it, you deserve it!”
“You” being the residents of Tampa Bay. “It” being a new community health center.
This morning, Castor lent a hand and a little elbow grease in a groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the future 15,000 sq foot medical center in East Tampa.
The Congresswoman has been working with Tampa Family Health Centers or TFHC, a non-profit group healthcare group, to create the medical clinic that will be located on the corner of N. 22nd Street and Osborne Avenue.
Charles Bottoms, TFHC’s CEO, said the center will offer diverse healthcare services; such as primary care, pediatrics, internal medicine, family practice and limited OB/GYN and mental health care, to the low income and medically underserved residents of the community.
“Hopefully, we will be able to keep many of our clients here in the community versus having to go to the emergency rooms,” he said.
According to the National Association of Community Health Centers, such clinics provide primary care for more than 20 million Americans living in underprivileged communities. Currently, there are 6 Tampa Family Health Centers, with another being constructed on Dale Mabry near the University Community Hospital. TFHC clinics serve 25,000 patients annually. It makes a lot more sense to have a neighborhood clinic, Castor said, “ where folks know the person on the other side of the counter, they know the doctor, they know the nurse.”
That’s not the only reason. Community health centers save tax payers money.
“ Where do folks go if they don’t have health insurance these days?," Castor asked. "They end up at the emergency room …they go to the place of last resort, the place that is the most expensive, the place that we all wind up paying for."
Bottoms agrees. “We can do it a lot cheaper than emergency rooms.”
Castor said enabling people to get consistent, continuous primary care also costs less in the end. It creates preventative measures by detecting chronic and costly diseases in advance.
Helping the Tampa Bay area save money is one of the many benefits of the new community health center. Another benefit? it will also help the region make money.
“It will create hundreds of jobs-first in construction than in hiring medical professionals.”
It cost $3.8 million to purchase the land for the new medical center. TFHC’s Bottoms thanked Castor for pursuing federal money from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, which helped pay for a third of the cost.
Castor extolled the benefits of the stimulus plan. “ This is the intent of the Recovery Act at work. It has been one year since President Obama signed (the act) into law and it is our lifeline here in the Tampa Bay area. We struggled more than most communities across the country.”
The 11th District Democratic Representative said the “recession hit Florida earlier,” the housing struggle “hit Florida harder” and the “unemployment rate is higher than any other area of the country.”
“We’ve been put through the ringer here,” she added.
Castor has been a staunch supporter for healthcare reform, pushing for the final Democratic bill that failed to pass Congress last month. The election of Massachusetts Republican Senator, Scott Brown, ended the filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the Senate. To end the standoff between Democrats and Republicans, President Obama will hold a bi-partisan healthcare summit that will be televised later this week.
A proposed health insurance plan offered by the federal government, the “public option” is a key feature of the Democrats’ bill that has been widely opposed by Republicans. Castor said she hopes the plan will be back on the agenda for discussion this week.
“These insurance companies are absolutely reaming the consumer. we’ve got bring greater competition into the healthcare market and I know President Obama is fighting for that competition.”
The new community health center is expected to be completed within a few months. Charles Bottoms hopes the remaining costs will be funded by local agencies.
This article appears in Feb 17-23, 2010.