$41M in federal funds will support COVID care at 18 Maine health centers

COURTESY / PENOBSCOT COMMUNITY HEALTH CARE Penobscot Community Health Care in Bangor was one of 18 Maine health centers to receive a total of $41 million from the recently passed American Rescue Plan.

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By Staff

A total of $41 million from the federal government's recently passed American Rescue Plan is on the way to help18 Maine health centers provide COVID-19 vaccination and services for vulnerable populations.

The health centers, from Caribou to Lubec to Sanford, will be able to use the funds for a wide range of pandemic purposes, according to a news release Thursday from the office of U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine 1st District. They include vaccination, testing and treatment for vulnerable populations; preventive and primary health care services for those at high risk for COVID-19; and expansion of the health centers’ physical capacity and infrastructure during the pandemic and beyond.

“Maine’s community health centers have been on the front lines of the state’s pandemic response since day one, serving primarily underserved and vulnerable populations across Maine,” Darcy Shargo, CEO of the Maine Primary Care Association, said in the release. “Health equity is at the heart of who we are and what we do.”

Pingree said, “Living in a rural or underserved place shouldn’t mean that you have less access to a vaccine or treatment for COVID-19. These funds mean a world of difference for testing and vaccination distribution in Maine and will go a long way to stopping the spread of the coronavirus.”

The 18 Health Resources and Services Administration-funded health centers are community-based and patient-directed organizations that deliver affordable, accessible, quality and cost-effective primary health care to medically underserved communities and vulnerable populations.

Such health centers serve 1 in 5 people living in rural communities, and 1 in 11 people nationwide. More than 91% of health center patients are individuals or families living at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines, and nearly 63% are racial or ethnic minorities.

In Maine, money was allocated to the following centers: