Bayfield County to open new health center

Published: August 29, 2007

The county – one of the poorest in the nation – will receive a $600,000 grant in September from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the new center, which will be eligible to receive ongoing financial support from the state and federal governments.
The center will extend primary health services to more than 3,000 of the region’s lowest-income residents each year.
“The receipt of the DHHS implementation grant is a wonderful opportunity for the community, Pat Sheridan, president of the Bayfield County Community Health Center Board leading the center, said in a statement. “We have a strong and engaged board that is up to the task of getting a clinic open in 120 days.”
In addition to the board, the Bayfield center will be supported by a network of area health information centers and providers, including the Wisconsin Primary Health Care Association, the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and the Northern Wisconsin Area Health Education Center.
“News of the opening of this center could not come at a more critical time,” state Senator Bob Jauch, D-Poplar, stated. “Residents of northwestern Wisconsin — particularly those who are Medicaid eligible — are finding it increasingly difficult to access primary health services. This center should make great progress toward alleviating that need.”
Jauch said he hopes the clinic will highlight the importance of including a $3 million increase for community health centers in the state budget. The state Senate and Joint Finance Committee both approved the funding, while the Assembly did not.