Tom Harkin: “Community health centers are really the last sort of backstop for so many people in this country who don't have health…”

“Community health centers are really the last sort of backstop for so many people in this country who don't have health insurance--44 million people in America don't have health insurance. Mainly, these are the ones who, right now, for their health needs really need the community health centers. We have about seven in our State of Iowa. We are opening another one this summer. About 66,000 people are served per year in the State of Iowa by our community health centers. The really good thing--and the Senator from Missouri knows it--about community health centers is they are engaged in preventive health care, keeping people healthy in the first place, not just coming in when they are sick. They do a lot of outreach work with low-income people. They help with their diets, lifestyles, and with the medicines they need to keep them healthy. That is one of the great services they provide. We increased the funding for community health centers over last year by $100 million. This would add another $50 million on to it.”