Bipartison Budget Includes CHC Funding

Following a brief government shutdown, Congress passed a bipartisan spending package that included two years of funding for Community Health Centers, the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), and the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) Program.

Congress had failed to reauthorize the Community Health Center Fund which expired September 29, 2017, placing nearly 1400 health centers and the 27 million patients they serve at risk.

$7.8 billion dollars in federal grant funding for the Community Health Center program was included in the bipartisan budget deal passed by Congress early Feb. 9, 2018.

Congress included an additional $600 million dollars to further support health center operations and address unmet needs in communities across the country, as well as $60 million dollars to assist health centers in areas impacted by recent natural disasters.

With uncertainty around their funding now put to rest, health centers can return to focusing solely on what they do best – caring for their patients and communities.

CHIP Funding Extended to 10 Years

Senate leaders also announced that, as part of a broader budget agreement, they would lengthen the six-year funding extension for CHIP that Congress passed last month to a full 10 years of funding for the program. After a brief government shutdown on Friday morning, Congress passed that deal into law.