Thursday, Feb 17 2011 5:13PM
Community health centers are the main source of medical care for many in rural Idaho.
Many living in rural sections of Idaho may not have easy access to medical care for long, as multiple community health centers in the region may be forced to close their doors due to a possible cut in federal funding, reported the Public News Service.
The U.S. House Appropriations Committee recently proposed a $1 billion cut to community health center funding across the country. Combined with Idaho's recent $8 million cut to Medicaid services, rural and low-income Idahoans' options for healthcare would dwindle considerably.
According to the news source, Idaho currently has 13 community health centers, and for many rural areas, they are the only local access residents have to physicians. Denise Groves, the executive director of the Adams County Health Center told the news service the center contains the only pharmacy and medical care facilities for the area's 3,600 patients.
"The community health center here — and this is my opinion, based on experience — we literally mean the difference between life and death to the residents of this county," she said.
If congress approves the cut, more than 100 community health centers in the nation would lose funding, severely limiting rural community assistance programs for outlying communities.