State Presents $605,000 in Special Needs Funds to Upper Cumberland Counties
On behalf of Governor Phil Bredesen and the State of Tennessee, Assistant Commissioner Cathy Taylor, DrPH, MSN, RN, presented a total of $605,000 in special needs funding awards to officials in four Upper Cumberland Region counties on Friday, November 16. The funds will be used to assist with renovations, expansions and other improvements at the health department facilities in DeKalb, Overton, Putnam and Warren Counties. The improvements will facilitate the provision of primary health care services for the uninsured.
“It is our goal to make primary care services available throughout Tennessee near the places where our citizens live and work,” said Governor Bredesen. “By committing these financial resources, the State and the Tennessee General Assembly have ensured the residents of these communities will have access to these important health services.”
In the fall of 2005, the Tennessee Department of Health began offering new or expanded adult primary care services to uninsured residents of Tennessee in an effort to strengthen the state’s health care safety net. In June 2006, Governor Bredesen signed the Cover Tennessee Act, which includes initiatives to extend health coverage to uninsured children and chronically ill adults, and creates a low-cost insurance program for uninsured working Tennesseans.
Funding awards are as follows:
- DeKalb County $100,000
- Overton County $230,000
- Putnam County $200,000
- Warren County $ 75,000
“We are so pleased we were able to work with Governor Bredesen and the Legislature in supporting the provision of primary health care through our health department clinics in these communities in our Upper Cumberland Region,” said Taylor. “These services are an important way to prevent serious illness and provide management of chronic health conditions.”
These county health departments provide an array of services including adult primary care, family planning, immunizations, well child/EPSDT screenings, WIC and nutrition services, breast
and cervical cancer screening, birth and death certificates, children’s special services, HIV testing and counseling, sexually transmitted disease testing and treatment and communicable disease control. Primary care services are offered on a sliding fee scale based on income, with a $5 minimum fee for each visit.
To find your local county health department, visit the Department of Health Web site at http://health.state.tn.us/localdepartments.htm.