How health centers across Tennessee provide care for underserved communities | Opinion

• Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Brentwood, is Tennessee's senior U.S. senator.
• Libby Thurman is interim CEO of the Tennessee Primary Care Association.

We commemorate Aug. 8-14 as National Health Center Week — a time for us to celebrate the work our front line providers and staff at local clinics have done to battle COVID-19.

The pressure the pandemic put on America’s health care delivery system shone a light on the critical role Federally Qualified Health Centers play in keeping rural and underserved communities healthy and safe.

Federally Qualified Health Centers provide comprehensive primary care and non-clinical services to all patients, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay.

Tennessee is home to 30 Federally Qualified Health Centers that deliver comprehensive primary care services through nearly 200 sites across the state. These locally operated non-profit clinics employ more than 3,000 people, and serve more than 434,000 patients.

Tennessee has second most rural hospital closures in U.S.

The mission of Federally Qualified Health Centers remains crucial today because access to basic care remains a challenge in parts of the United States.

Many people live in remote and underserved communities where there is a shortage of providers; in many cases, the nearest doctor or hospital can be as far as a 50-mile drive into another county.

Tennessee is No. 2 in the nation for rural hospital closures, a problem exacerbated by dwindling interest in rural practice after medical school.

As of last December, more than 60% of Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas were located in rural areas. These closures, coupled with a lack of broadband services, has worsened access to healthcare.   

Hear more Tennessee Voices:Get the weekly opinion newsletter for insightful and thought provoking columns.

The good news is that Federally Qualified Health Centers are strategically positioned and still form an important “safety” net for rural patients in 70 of Tennessee’s 95 counties.

These outpatient clinics often serve as the only providers of affordable primary care services in underserved rural and urban areas.

Telehealth expansion created new avenues for treatment during COVID

During the pandemic, our state’s Federally Qualified Health Centers maintained access points for timely and necessary care by pivoting to telehealth.

Senator Blackburn pushed the Trump Administration to waive certain regulations that were preventing Medicare patients from taking advantage of telehealth services.

This access to lifesaving technology helped those seeking proper care overcome geographic challenges and inadequate, or nonexistent, transportation options.

In addition, providers and staff embraced virtual training, ensuring continuity in quality care and organizational excellence.

These three bills in Congress would improve access to care

Right now, lawmakers in Washington have the rare opportunity to keep this momentum on behalf of unserved areas alive via a series of targeted, bipartisan bills.

Programs contained in the Blackburn-Durbin Rural America Health Corps Act would incentivize medical students and licensed health care providers to practice in underserved rural communities.

Additionally, through competitive grants contained in the Blackburn-Hickenlooper Rural Health Innovation Act FQHCs and health departments would be able to revitalize existing resources by hiring more providers, offering longer hours, purchasing and upgrading equipment, establishing new urgent care centers, and kickstarting outreach and literacy programs.

Finally, the Telehealth Improvement Act would make many of the emergency changes to telehealth policy for Medicare patients a permanent part of the landscape.

During the height of the pandemic, Tennessee’s network of Federally Qualified Health Centers formed an important lifeline for poor and unserved patients; and now, providers and advocates are taking a seat at the table to remind policymakers that these clinics aren’t merely a matter of convenience.

Instead, they provide quality care in unserved communities that many Americans living outside these health care “deserts” take for granted.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Brentwood, is Tennessee's senior U.S. senator. Libby Thurman is interim CEO of the Tennessee Primary Care Association.