Changing Care, Changing Lives: The Community Health Center Story

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The First Rural CHC (Mound Bayou, Mississippi)

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Stories

Early Health Center Program Documents

The National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), was founded in 1971 as the National Association of Neighborhood Health Centers.

Early Health Center Program Documents

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Community Health Centers: Chronicling Their History and Broader Meaning

In 1965 the nation’s first community health centers were launched as a small demonstration program as part of the President Johnson’s Office of Economic Opportunity.

Community Health Centers: Chronicling Their History and Broader Meaning

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Part 5: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Part 5: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Empathy in Practice

One of my favorite parts of the recent NACHC Community Health Institute (CHI) in Orlando was actress Anna Deavere Smith’s opening session performance from her work “Let Me Down Easy,” a series of monologues based on interviews with people about their experiences with the health care system.

Empathy in Practice

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Honoring the Migrant Health Program and the Workers it Serves

This year’s conference marked the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Migrant Health Act and honored the historic first comprehensive efforts to provide health services to the migrant farm worker population in the U.S.

Honoring the Migrant Health Program and the Workers it Serves

Topics: Migrant Health Centers,... +

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Migrant Health Centers, Special Populations, Chronicles Beat
Part 2: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Part 2: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Migrant and Farmworker Historical Photos

View historical photos documented throughout the years.

Migrant and Farmworker Historical Photos

Topics: Migrant Health Centers,... +

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Migrant Health Centers, Special Populations
Tackling Access Barriers, In Three Languages

Monmouth Family Medical Center (MFMC) is located in Long Branch, NJ, a small city situated along the Jersey Shore, and a popular summer destination for those from the New York and New Jersey metro area as well as more local communities.

Tackling Access Barriers, In Three Languages

Topics: Special Populations, Chronicles... +

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Special Populations, Chronicles Beat
Out in the Rural: A Mississippi Health Center and Its War on Poverty

In Out in the Rural: A Mississippi Health Center and Its War on Poverty, historian Dr. Thomas J. Ward Jr., professor and chair of the History Department at Spring Hill College (Mobile, Alabama) explores the origins of the community health center movement through the story of the Tufts-Delta Health Center in Mound Bayou, Mississippi.

Out in the Rural: A Mississippi Health Center and Its War on Poverty

Topics: Earliest CHCs, Chronicles... +

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Earliest CHCs, Chronicles Beat
Part 1: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Lisbeth "Lee" Schorr, from the Community Action Program at OEO discusses the origins of the community health center movement.

Part 1: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Special Populations: Public Housing Primary Care Program

The PHPC is a federal grant program created in 1990 under the Disadvantaged Minority Health Improvement Act to “provide for the delivery of primary care services, referrals, and health counseling and education services to residents of public housing.”

Special Populations: Public Housing Primary Care Program

Topics: Special Populations, Public... +

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Special Populations, Public Housing Primary Care Program
Changing Care, Changing Lives: The Community Health Center Story

Changing Care, Changing Lives: The Community Health Center Story
Charles B. Wang Community Health Center & NYC Department of Health Collaborate On Smoking Cessation Efforts

A new report from the health department reveals startling statistics on smoking and tobacco use among Chinese New Yorkers along with community health center advocacy efforts to reduce smoking and increase awareness.

Charles B. Wang Community Health Center & NYC Department of Health Collaborate On Smoking Cessation Efforts

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Collaborating Partners

The RCHN Community Health Foundation is a not-for-profit operating foundation established to support community health centers through strategic investment, outreach, education, and cutting-edge health policy research.

Collaborating Partners
Migrant Health Centers: Historical Documents

Documents relevant to the history of Migrants Health Centers.

Migrant Health Centers: Historical Documents

Topics: Migrant Health Centers,... +

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Migrant Health Centers, Earliest CHCs
Phase One of ACA Implementation: RCHN-CHF Grantees Enroll Thousands

In December 2013, the RCHN Community Health Foundation launched its Outreach & Enrollment Initiative, funding new projects at Primary Care Associations and community health centers in five states.

Phase One of ACA Implementation: RCHN-CHF Grantees Enroll Thousands

Topics: Special Populations, Chronicles... +

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Special Populations, Chronicles Beat
Community Health Centers and Veterans Health

The number of veterans served by community health centers has increased by 43 percent in less than 10 years. This finding and other data presented in the infographic indicate that community health center locations help improve access to care for veterans across the country.

Community Health Centers and Veterans Health

Topics: Infographics, Special... +

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Infographics, Special Populations
Health care for the Homeless

Health Care for the Homeless programs emphasize integrated and multi-disciplinary care to address the myriad health problems faced by the homeless, exacerbated by their lack of permanent housing.

Health care for the Homeless

Topics: Health Care for... +

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Health Care for the Homeless
The Bronx Committee for the Community's Health

The Bronx Committee for the Community's Health

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Part 3: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Lisbeth "Lee" Schorr, from the Community Action Program at OEO discusses the origins of the community health center movement.

Part 3: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Bee Busy Wellness Center: Empowering Patients to be Active Partners in Their Care

Bee Busy Wellness Center: Empowering Patients to be Active Partners in Their Care

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Special... +

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Chronicles Beat, Special Populations
Tackling the Health Consequences of Homelessness, One Patient at a Time

Care for Homeless, a multi-site community health center in New York City, is one of several NYC CHCs at the forefront of offering healthcare and social services to vulnerable homeless people.

Tackling the Health Consequences of Homelessness, One Patient at a Time

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Health... +

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Chronicles Beat, Health Care for the Homeless
Community Health Centers: Identifying and Responding to Human Trafficking

Human trafficking is a global issue, as well a local one. Trafficking is, simply stated, a form of slavery, and it is a crime. Community health centers, which by mission provide essential care to the uninsured, underserved, and to marginalized communities, are likely encountering trafficking victims daily, and are uniquely situated to identify, help and support them.

Community Health Centers: Identifying and Responding to Human Trafficking

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Special... +

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Chronicles Beat, Special Populations
Closing the Coverage Gap – On the Ground in Texas

An October, 2013 policy brief from the Geiger Gibson / RCHN CHF Research Collaborative “Assessing the Potential Impact of the Affordable Care Act on Uninsured Community Health Center Patients: A Nationwide and State-By-State Analysis” outlines the impact in those 26 states that were not planning to go forward with Medicaid expansion.

Closing the Coverage Gap – On the Ground in Texas

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Special... +

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Chronicles Beat, Special Populations
Special Populations: Health Care for the Homeless

Health centers provide care to all members of their communities, including those who may be homeless.

Special Populations: Health Care for the Homeless

Topics: Health Care for... +

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Health Care for the Homeless, Special Populations
ACA Outreach and enrollment in the Mississippi Delta – Increasing Access in a Non Medicaid Expansion State

Mississippi, a place with perhaps the greatest need for more investment in health care, is one of 24 states that are not expanding Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.

ACA Outreach and enrollment in the Mississippi Delta – Increasing Access in a Non Medicaid Expansion State

Topics: Rural CHCs, Chronicles... +

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Rural CHCs, Chronicles Beat
CHC History Photo Slideshow

View historical photos of Community Health Centers around the country.

CHC History Photo Slideshow

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Patient Advocates – Opening Doors to Health Care

Located a short ride away from Manhattan, off the Hudson River, Open Door feels far removed from the big city.

Patient Advocates – Opening Doors to Health Care

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Eye on the Movement: Alan Pogue Documents Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers

Photographs and oral history by Human Rights and Peace Activist Alan Pogue.

Eye on the Movement: Alan Pogue Documents Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers

Topics: Migrant Health... +

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Migrant Health Centers
Part 1: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Dr. Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch discuss the Community Health Center Movement.

Part 1: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Advocating Healthcare Equity for LGBT Patients Through Compassionate and Culturally Competent Care

Each year, the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy of the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services (SPHHS) recognizes young Emerging Leaders in community health.

Advocating Healthcare Equity for LGBT Patients Through Compassionate and Culturally Competent Care

Topics: Special Populations, Chronicles... +

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Special Populations, Chronicles Beat
A Subway Tour and a Glimpse at Two CHCs in New York City

Of New York’s 60 community health centers that provide care to the underserved throughout the State, 27 are located in New York City.

A Subway Tour and a Glimpse at Two CHCs in New York City

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Part 3: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Part 3: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Cutting-Edge Technology and Good, Old Fashioned Caring in Rural Upstate New York

Finger Lakes Community Health serves over 17,000 patients in upstate New York. Established in 1989 as a Migrant Health Clinic, they became designated as a federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in 2009 and have experienced tremendous growth as an organization in a few short years.

Cutting-Edge Technology and Good, Old Fashioned Caring in Rural Upstate New York

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Rural... +

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Chronicles Beat, Rural CHCs
A Peoples Movement: Massachusetts Community Health Centers’ Historic Fight for Access

Today, there are 37 federally qualified community health centers throughout Massachusetts, a large number relative to the state’s population and geographic size. This is no accident, and reflects the long-standing history of health care activism in the state.

A Peoples Movement: Massachusetts Community Health Centers’ Historic Fight for Access

Topics: Earliest CHCs, Chronicles... +

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Earliest CHCs, Chronicles Beat
Community Health Centers: Caring for People - Benefitting the Communities

An infographic showing the scope of Community Health Centers.

Community Health Centers: Caring for People - Benefitting the Communities

Topics: Infographics
Special Populations: Migrant Health Centers

The oldest of all laws that have come to comprise the modern health centers program, The Migrant Health Act, signed in to law by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, authorized the development and support of clinical health care services for migrant farmworkers and their families.

Special Populations: Migrant Health Centers

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Migrant Health Centers, Special Populations, Rural CHCs
The First Rural CHC (Mound Bayou, Mississippi)

The Delta Health Center in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, which recently opened a new state-of-the-art facility, launched in 1967 as the first rural health center in the United States.

The First Rural CHC (Mound Bayou, Mississippi)

Topics: Rural CHCs, Earliest... +

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Rural CHCs, Earliest CHCs
CHC Movement: A National Program, Building on Local Roots

While the history of health centers is, in many respects, understood one health center at a time, health centers also can be thought of as a rich tapestry and a means by which millions of residents of the nation’s medically underserved communities and populations have joined together to make themselves heard.

CHC Movement: A National Program, Building on Local Roots

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Emerging Leader Awards

Each year, the Geiger Gibson Program in Community Health Policy at the George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health (Milken Institute SPH) honors young professionals currently working in the field of community health.

Emerging Leader Awards

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Part 2: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Lisbeth "Lee" Schorr, from the Community Action Program at OEO discusses the origins of the community health center movement.

Part 2: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Daniel Zwick: The Community Action program and early activist neighborhood health reform

Daniel I. Zwick, the Executive Officer of the Health Program, OEO, 1967-1971, discusses the origins of the community health center movement and the role of early leadership.

Daniel Zwick: The Community Action program and early activist neighborhood health reform

Topics: Earliest CHCs
Full Circle: Once a Peds Patient, Now a Doctor at Jericho Road

Dr. Ethan Gable was a patient at what was then known as Jericho Road Family Practice (JRFP) when he was a child. Then a family practice located in upstate New York, JRFP served the area’s vulnerable refugees and underserved, low-income communities. Back then, Gable never entertained the idea that he himself would become a doctor.

Full Circle: Once a Peds Patient, Now a Doctor at Jericho Road

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Confronting Infant Mortality in Erie County, Ohio

In 2014, more than 23,000 infants in the U.S. died before their first birthday.

Confronting Infant Mortality in Erie County, Ohio

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Caring for Veterans, Caring for Our Communities

Community Health Centers are the backbone of America’s safety net, and provide essential care to underserved, low-income communities in urban and rural areas throughout the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories. In 2017, more than 1,400 community health centers (CHCs) provided health care to nearly 28 million people. By mission and mandate, health centers focus on expanding access to care for marginalized communities and populations. One such significant population served by health centers are America’s veterans.

Caring for Veterans, Caring for Our Communities

Topics: Chronicles Beat, Special... +

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Chronicles Beat, Special Populations
Health Center Resilience and Community Recovery in Puerto Rico

With the six-month anniversary of Hurricane Maria nearly coincident with this year’s National Association of Community Health Center’s Policy and Issues Forum, the closing session was devoted to learning about the crisis, and recognizing the essential role of Puerto Rico’s twenty health center organizations in response and recovery.

Health Center Resilience and Community Recovery in Puerto Rico

Topics: Chronicles Beat
CHroniCles, the Community Health Center Story

Did you catch us at the 2018 NACHC Policy and Issues Forum? We were there showcasing CHroniCles, an interactive multimedia website dedicated to documenting and recording the contributions that CHCs and PCAs across the country have made to expanding access to health care and delivering high-quality, comprehensive services.

CHroniCles, the Community Health Center Story
Mentoring the Next Generation of Community Health Leaders at Charles B. Wang Community Health Center

For over 40 years, the Charles B. Wang Community Health Center (CBWCHC) has provided high quality, culturally sensitive and affordable care to the Asian-American community in New York City.

Mentoring the Next Generation of Community Health Leaders at Charles B. Wang Community Health Center

Topics: Chronicles Beat
CHCs Respond to the Zika Crisis in Puerto Rico

CHCs Respond to the Zika Crisis in Puerto Rico

Topics: Chronicles Beat
Migrant and Farmworker Contemporary Photos

View a slideshow of migrant and farmworker contemporary photos

Migrant and Farmworker Contemporary Photos

Topics: Migrant Health... +

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Migrant Health Centers
Community Health Center Programs

Community, Migrant, Homeless, and Public Housing Health Centers are non-profit, community-directed health care providers serving low income and medically underserved communities.

Community Health Center Programs
"Who’s Counting on You to Stay Healthy” – Comprehensive Insurance Outreach and Enrollment in Maine

In 2014, Maine Primary Care Association developed a comprehensive strategy focused on helping member centers enroll uninsured Maine residents in the ACA healthcare exchanges and MaineCare.

"Who’s Counting on You to Stay Healthy” – Comprehensive Insurance Outreach and Enrollment in Maine

Topics: Rural CHCs, Chronicles... +

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Rural CHCs, Chronicles Beat
Part 4: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Part 4: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Topics: Earliest CHCs

Changing Care, Changing Lives: The Community Health Center Story

The First Rural CHC (Mound Bayou, Mississippi)

Related Content

Stories

Early Health Center Program Documents

Community Health Centers: Chronicling Their History and Broader Meaning

Part 5: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Empathy in Practice

Honoring the Migrant Health Program and the Workers it Serves

Related Content

Part 2: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Migrant and Farmworker Historical Photos

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Tackling Access Barriers, In Three Languages

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Out in the Rural: A Mississippi Health Center and Its War on Poverty

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Part 1: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Special Populations: Public Housing Primary Care Program

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Changing Care, Changing Lives: The Community Health Center Story

Charles B. Wang Community Health Center & NYC Department of Health Collaborate On Smoking Cessation Efforts

Collaborating Partners

Migrant Health Centers: Historical Documents

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Phase One of ACA Implementation: RCHN-CHF Grantees Enroll Thousands

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Community Health Centers and Veterans Health

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Health care for the Homeless

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The Bronx Committee for the Community's Health

Part 3: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Bee Busy Wellness Center: Empowering Patients to be Active Partners in Their Care

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Tackling the Health Consequences of Homelessness, One Patient at a Time

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Community Health Centers: Identifying and Responding to Human Trafficking

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Closing the Coverage Gap – On the Ground in Texas

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Special Populations: Health Care for the Homeless

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ACA Outreach and enrollment in the Mississippi Delta – Increasing Access in a Non Medicaid Expansion State

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CHC History Photo Slideshow

Patient Advocates – Opening Doors to Health Care

Eye on the Movement: Alan Pogue Documents Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers

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Part 1: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Advocating Healthcare Equity for LGBT Patients Through Compassionate and Culturally Competent Care

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A Subway Tour and a Glimpse at Two CHCs in New York City

Part 3: Dr. H Jack Geiger and Dr. John Hatch on the Earliest CHCs

Cutting-Edge Technology and Good, Old Fashioned Caring in Rural Upstate New York

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A Peoples Movement: Massachusetts Community Health Centers’ Historic Fight for Access

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Community Health Centers: Caring for People - Benefitting the Communities

Special Populations: Migrant Health Centers

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The First Rural CHC (Mound Bayou, Mississippi)

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CHC Movement: A National Program, Building on Local Roots

Emerging Leader Awards

Part 2: The OEO and the early champions of neighborhood health centers

Daniel Zwick: The Community Action program and early activist neighborhood health reform

Full Circle: Once a Peds Patient, Now a Doctor at Jericho Road

Confronting Infant Mortality in Erie County, Ohio

Caring for Veterans, Caring for Our Communities

Related Content

Health Center Resilience and Community Recovery in Puerto Rico

CHroniCles, the Community Health Center Story

Mentoring the Next Generation of Community Health Leaders at Charles B. Wang Community Health Center

CHCs Respond to the Zika Crisis in Puerto Rico

Migrant and Farmworker Contemporary Photos

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Community Health Center Programs

"Who’s Counting on You to Stay Healthy” – Comprehensive Insurance Outreach and Enrollment in Maine

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