Saturday, April 5, 2025
4/5/2025
Fiscal Year 2023 Capital Assistance for Hurricane Response and Recovery Efforts (CARE) - Tri-County Community Health Council, Inc., d/b/a CommWell Health (CWH) is a not-for-profit Community/Migrant Health Center funded under Sections 330(e)(g). CWH is a system of Health Centers serving six counties in southeastern North Carolina. Over 45 years, CWH has provided culturally and linguistically competent primary medical, dental, behavioral healthcare, care coordination, pharmacy, WIC, OB/GYN, and infectious disease care to vulnerable populations and the community. The organization is accredited by Joint Commission in ambulatory and behavioral health care and has been certified as a Patient-Centered Medical Home. Proposed Project: CWH proposes the use of CARE funding to support three projects: (1) Equipment – purchase and acquisition of a multi-disciplinary, dual-operatory mobile unit capable of providing medical, dental, and behavioral health services. This 33-foot dual operatory unit would be deployed within the CommWell Health service area during disaster recovery periods, partnering with local municipalities and organizations (e.g., County Emergency Management, Red Cross, Direct Relief, International Medical Corps) to establish temporary clinic services in high-need areas (e.g., disaster shelters), (2) Alteration and Renovation – installation of a 26kw generator (impacting 8 square feet) at CommWell Health Bolivia, a practice location located in central Brunswick County, a coastal county often affected by tropical systems. The generator will provide power to support continued primary care operations/services during long-term power outages in Brunswick County, (3) Alteration and Renovation – installation of a 26kw generator and a 48kw generator (impacting 26 square feet) at the CommWell Health Newton Grove/Spivey’s Corner, supporting continued medical and pharmacy operations in Northern Sampson County, a location accessible by two major interstates 95 and 40. The campus will also serve as a hub for emergency response operations during periods of significant disaster recovery. For the proposed three projects, the estimated time to completion will be by 4/1/2024, or seven months from the date of funding award. Need: Impacts of significant storms since 2018 (Hurricane Florence (2018), Tropical Storm Michael (2018), and Hurricane Ian (2022)) at the CommWell Health practice locations resulted in damage and flooding in multiple buildings, as well as prolonged power outages, lasting up to a week or more. Before and during COVID and these tropical systems, CommWell Health has established itself as a critical and essential partner during disaster recovery by partnering with local County Emergency Management, Direct Relief, Red Cross, and the International Medical Corps to provide primary medical care and assist in the distribution of pharmaceuticals to individuals and families temporarily located to disaster shelters. In addition, during prolonged power outages, for effective disaster response, CommWell Health requires specific strategically located practice locations to be operational to provide primary care on-site, serve as a staging area for disaster response, and if needed, serve as temporary lodging for staff. Currently, no free-standing CommWell Health practice location has emergency generators on-site. Proposed Services: The practice locations identified in this proposal offer primary medical, dental, and behavioral health care; lab; x-ray; WIC; psychiatry; outpatient substance use and mental health counseling; intensive outpatient substance use counseling. Target Population: The proposed project will target those individuals who live at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level and are uninsured or Medicaid/Medicare eligible and migrant/seasonal farmworkers living and working in the CommWell Health service area. Additional stakeholders served in the project are community members who would benefit from disaster recovery efforts and County Emergency Management services.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).