St. David’s Foundation invests over $21 million in grants to Federally Qualified Health Centers

St. David’s Foundation has announced $21 million in new funding to a group of Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) in Central Texas aimed towards improving access to primary, behavioral, and oral health services for adult Central Texans without insurance and equipping those clinics with the financial support needed to connect patients to services and resources addressing social and community conditions.

FQHCs provide essential healthcare services to low-income and historically marginalized members of the community who face the greatest barriers to accessing care. Serving as a trusted community resource, these clinics are also uniquely positioned to identify and meet many of the non-medical needs that significantly impact the health and well-being of patients such as access to safe and affordable housing, transportation, and healthy food.

St. David’s Foundation provides support to FQHCs for healthcare services and to strengthen their ability to screen for non-medical needs and develop workflows that not only connect patients with social services but also ensure follow-up with those patients. By working closely with these clinical partners, the Foundation helps clinics shift practices to prioritize keeping communities healthy rather than solely focusing on increased procedures for sick patients.

St. David’s Foundation’s approach to health equity seeks to advance system solutions while also responding to immediate service needs of individuals today. “Our objective is to improve the health of all Central Texans, especially those who are uninsured or have inadequate health insurance,” said Dr. Edward Burger, President and CEO of St. David’s Foundation. “We aim to connect all our neighbors to health clinics, social services, and community resources so that they have the care and support they require through community hubs for health.”

The organizations awarded funding are working to address critical health issues in our community at a time of acute need. “Investing in access to care is particularly urgent as the disenrollment crisis has resulted in the loss of health insurance for more than a million Texans — largely impacting already vulnerable and marginalized populations further increasing health disparities across the state,” said Amy Einhorn, Senior Program Officer at St. David’s Foundation.

Grant recipients include:

• CommuniCare Health Centers (Hays County) – $1,866,572
• Community Health Centers of South Central Texas (Bastrop and Caldwell Counties) – $3,969,000
• Lone Star Circle of Care (Travis, Bastrop, and Williamson Counties) – $9,234,000
• People’s Community Clinic (Travis County) – $6,668,344

Click here to learn more about our Clinics as Community Hubs for Health strategy.