Federal grant to allow new Clermont County health centers
Cincinnati.com – …"With new facilities and expanded space, we can hire more providers to see more patients," Jackson said.
The private, nonprofit agency has 300 doctors or support workers, who treat about 55,000 patients annually, Jackson said. It has 15 sites in Clermont and four other counties: Brown, Adams, Highland and Fayette.
"We're the state of Ohio's largest community health center," Jackson said. While founded in 1976, "we're the region's best-kept secret.
"Being a community health center, we see everybody: those with the best insurance in town, those with no insurance, those with Medicaid, Medicare," Jackson said. "What sets us apart is we take all regardless of their ability to pay. … We offer a discounted fee based on folks' family size and income. A lot of people would otherwise go without medical care."
The grant will pay for a 12,000-square-foot building for New Richmond Family Practice, which will replace one on Old U.S. 52 that's in the Ohio River flood plain, Jackson said. "It's going to be higher on the hill. We've already purchased land. It's going to allow us to see about 4,500 new patients" there.
A 15,000-square-foot building to be constructed on Mount Carmel-Tobasco Road in Union Township will be the new home of Eastgate Pediatrics, which is now on Ferguson Drive, Jackson said.
Receiving similar grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act were health centers in Franklin and Morgan counties.
"These funds will help expand Ohioans' access to medical care while creating jobs," said U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, the Ohio Democrat.
