Political Quotes

“H.R. 3010 falls far short of helping rectify many of the problems facing our Nation's and specifically, my constituents' healthcare needs. There are a number of areas of this appropriations bill that will have a significant impact on the future of healthcare delivery for the underserved communities of this country. As the number of uninsured and underinsured continues to rise, the government programs which act as a safety net continue to be challenged to provide more care with less funding. While the President and his administration support the funding of Community Health Centers, CHCs, the implication of the funding shortfall with regards to the training of health care professionals is that there will be a lack of future physicians and health care providers to staff these very centers. Specifically, three HHS programs targeting underrepresented minorities in the healthcare professions have been completely eliminated by this bill with no explanation from the committee. This evisceration totals $158 million that would otherwise directly lead to underrepresented minorities entering healthcare professions and potentially serving the very communities they grew up in and are hurting the most from the lack of access. The ``Centers of Excellence'' program, which last year contributed $33.6 million to health professions schools with significant minority enrollment, will no longer exist under this appropriations bill.…”