Massachusetts CHC leaders at the office of US Representative Ayanna Pressley on Hill Day
Earlier this month, Chief Operating Officer, Kenya Allen and Chief Clinical Officer, Klavdia Brisson attended the National Association of Community Health Center’s (NACHC) annual Policy and Issues Forum in Washington DC. This annual landmark event unites CHC executives, clinicians, board members, and state association leaders to shape the future of primary care in America. Thousands of CHC leaders from around the country joined national leaders and change-makers to develop strategies for expanding access to primary care to reduce chronic disease, save lives and reduce costs.
The Forum focused on innovative approaches to chronic disease management, demonstrated the cost-saving impact of CHCs to bipartisan members of Congress, and worked to help shape policies that help make Americans healthy. CHCs serve 32.5 million patients in rural, urban. and suburban communities across the country (10% of the US population) but represent roughly 1% of total annual health care spend in the US. Their innovative and comprehensive model improves health and reduces costly ER care, delivering savings to American taxpayers.
While in DC, Kenya and Klavdia also participated in the annual “Hill Day” on Capitol Hill and met with Representatives Katherine Clark and Ayanna Pressley (who are the US Representatives for Waltham and Boston that include Charles River Community Health) and others to help advocate for funding to support our mission. The U.S. faces critical healthcare challenges – with only 4.7% of U.S. healthcare spending directed to primary care and 100 million Americans lacking reliable access to affordable primary care.
