New Study: 60 Million Americans Lack Access To Basic Medical Care

Main Category: Primary Care / General Practice
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 22 Mar 2009 - 1:00 PDT

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On Tuesday, March 24, at 9:30 a.m. EDT, health professionals from across the country will share their experiences and discuss a new report on the startling numbers of people struggling without access to basic health care during these tough economic times. The report, Primary Care Access: An Essential Building Block of Health Reform, will reveal that number of "medically disenfranchised" - people without a regular source of preventive and primary health care - grew from 56 million people to 60 million due to a host of factors that include a worsening shortage of primary care doctors in needy communities and a growing scarcity of providers willing to treat the uninsured or publicly insured.

The Congressional staff briefing, hosted by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) and open to the media, comes after the recent enactment of the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The ARRA, or economic stimulus package, provides $2 billion in one-time funding for health centers, which have been struggling with increased demand from uninsured and underinsured people during the economic downturn. Panelists will discuss how the report's findings can shape the existing debate on health care reform and how the investment of stimulus funds will address the access crisis by strengthening primary care.

Who:

Dan Hawkins, Senior Vice President for Policy and Programs, NACHC (moderator)

Lolita A. Lopez, FACHE, President and CEO, Westside Family Healthcare, Wilmington, DE

Gary Wiltz, M.D., Chief Executive Officer, Teche Action Clinic, Franklin, LA

Paul Kaye, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, Hudson River HealthCare, Peekskill, NY

What:

Report release, "Primary Care Access: An Essential Building Block of Health Reform"

Where:

2218 Rayburn House Office Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, DC

When:

Tuesday, March 24, 2009, 9:30 a.m.

NACHC