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NJHA’s March 13, 2008 Newslink Today article provided some insight regarding one of Executive Resource, LLC’s successful product lines – Community Health Centers / Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). While the financial status of NJ hospitals is tenuous these days, the FQHC arena is alive and funded (Federal and State). Federal grant funding for operations, funding of indigent care and as the article indicates, the potential for capital improvements, gives credence to the support for health centers throughout the country.

To demonstrate how viable the FQHC environment is, you just need to consider that the FQHC funding mechanism, the Federal government’s Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) 2009 budget calls for an increase of $27 million from 2008 to $2.1 billion in total. FQHC represents the only line item increase in HRSA’s 2009 budget, an overall budget that is projected to decline by $992 million.

How strong is the FQHC program? Fueled by the President’s Health Center Initiative to fund 1,200 new health centers (FQHC) over five years, the program has been incredibly successful. Many of our hospital health care clients, both in NJ and out-of-state, concerned over subsidizing ambulatory/outpatient losses due to more uninsured and underinsured patients, have utilized FQHC development as a way to curb those losses and to reduce costly and inappropriate primary care in their ERs through referral mechanisms. Appropriately structured, FQHC development can be win/win for both the hospital and the health center.

For example, Governor Corzine’s Executive Order No. 39 of October 2006 reinforces FQHC development for hospitals. Consequently, part of the charge of the Commission on Rationalizing Health Care Resources regarding financially distressed hospitals in New Jersey is to:

  • Analyze the characteristics of New Jersey’s most financially distressed hospitals to identify common factors contributing to their distress including the availability of alternative sources of care such as FQHCs and other ambulatory care providers;
  • Assess the current and projected future demand for physician, hospital, FQHC, and other ambulatory care providers in each such region and compare that future demand with existing capacity; and
  • Evaluate appropriate alternative uses to which such facilities might be put, including but not limited to, their potential redeployment as FQHCs, other ambulatory care providers, physician offices and treatment facilities.
 

As nationally recognized experts with multiple state hospital/FQHC development, Contemporary Health Care, Inc. can assist your hospital in determining if the FQHC alternative is right for your hospital and how to go about structuring that development. FQHC development is only one of our multiple product lines where we can assist. If you want more information on how we can help your facility, please call Larry Sargent, Bill Cusick, or Harry Wright at 732-974-7200. 

Contact us, and we'll be happy to tell you exactly how we can address your particular institutional situation.