Fiscal Year 2023 Capital Assistance for Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts (CARE) - Project Title: Capital Assistance for Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts (CARE) Applicant Organization Name: Community Health Centers of Pinellas/DBA: Evara Health Address: 14100 58th Street North, Clearwater, FL 33670 Project Director Name: Elodie Dorso, CEO Contact Phone Numbers: Voice: 727-824-8100; Fax: 727-895-3762 E-Mail Address: edorso@hcnetwork.org Website Address: www.evarahealth.org Grant Program Funding Request: $490,000 Community Health Centers of Pinellas, Inc./DBA: Evara Health (Evara), is a not-for-profit Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) which has been providing affordable, primary healthcare services to the residents of Pinellas County, Florida for over 40 years. Evara operates 14 brick and mortar centers and 2 mobile health centers throughout Pinellas County, providing high-quality comprehensive healthcare services to low-income, uninsured, and underserved residents. In 2022, Evara rendered over 205,826 visits for primary care and supportive services to 56,555 individual patients. Evara is recognized by HRSA as a “Health Center Quality Leader.” Evara is the dominant health center provider in Pinellas County. Of the patients served by Evara in 2022, 86% were low income, 74% at or below the poverty level, 22% uninsured, and 53% on Medicaid/CHIP. Evara’s network of health centers are strategically located in at-risk areas of the county to increase access to vital healthcare services for vulnerable populations. Pinellas County is the most densely populated county in Florida located on a peninsula on the east coast and especially susceptible to natural disasters such as flooding, tropical storms, and hurricanes. Evara is applying for Capital Assistance for Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts (CARE) funding for Alteration/Renovation (A/R) of an Existing Facility. The proposed project involves remodeling of 16,000 square feet of interior space to create a new health center, Evara Health – Countryside, located in zip code 33761 of Clearwater, FL. The proposed project will allow Evara to relocate services from two small health centers located near the proposed site, to nearly double the number of medical exam rooms and add a new in-house pharmacy to expand Evara’s service capacity. Further, the new facility improves Evara’s ability to sustain operations, respond to and recover from future emergencies and disasters such as Hurricane Ian. The community surrounding the Evara Health - Countryside center faces numerous barriers to care such as lack of transportation and economic stability. The sheer demand for healthcare services within this service area, coupled with the vulnerability of the underserved population, increases the need to support continuity of access in response to future emergencies and/or disasters. In this community, 28% of the population are low-income, 11% live in poverty, and 23% are minorities. Major healthcare needs include chronic disease management, cancer screenings, behavioral health, and access to care. In response to these needs, Evara is requesting $490,000 in CARE funding for renovation activities to open the new healthcare site. Evara has the unique opportunity to relocate services from two small centers and nearly double the operational capacity of current locations. In addition, Evara will open the on-site pharmacy, which proved to be the critical service during emergencies like hurricanes. Increasing capacity and ensuring continuous access to high quality primary care services to the vulnerable population of Pinellas county during a disaster or emergency is essential to the health of this community.
