Tuesday, April 29, 2025
4/29/2025
Fiscal Year 2025 Expanded Hours. - Health Center Program: H80CS00654 DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT: CareSouth Carolina, Inc. (CSC) is a federally qualified community health center (FQHC) that provides primary, preventive, and integrated behavioral health care for medically underserved residents of the northeastern Pee Dee region of South Carolina (SC) including Chesterfield, Darlington, Dillon, Lee, and Marlboro counties. Established in 1980, CSC is one of the few providers in the region that accepts all Medicaid and Medicare patients and offers services on a sliding fee discount scale (SFDS). The health center has received national and local recognition for industry-leading innovation in community-based care delivery and has been accredited by the Joint Commission for more than a decade. CSC operates thirteen permanent service-delivery locations and three administrative sites. In addition to its primary care sites, CSC also operates the Miles of Smiles Transportable Dental Program serving Title I schools, Head Start programs, and Disabilities and Special Needs Boards clients across the region through two mobile dental units. The health center also operates three mobile medical vans through its ROADS program. In 2023, CSC served 38,265 total users through the FQHC program (UDS, 2023). NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED: Data from the service area reveal systemic, widespread health disparities and emphasize the need for comprehensive primary and preventive health services that are accessible to those with low incomes and the uninsured. Within the service area, 51.3% of individuals live with incomes at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Chesterfield, Darlington, Lee, and Marlboro counties are designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSAs) for primary care; Dillon County is a primary care HPSA for the low-income population, and all five counties are HPSAs for mental health. All are also Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs) (Find Shortage Areas, HRSA, 2021). This presents significant barriers to care, particularly for low-income residents. Patient barriers such as working hours, inability to miss work for lost wages or threat of losing their job altogether, and lack of available childcare contribute to difficulties in accessing care during normal business hours. This can result in costly outcomes such as delaying needed care or seeking non-urgent care in the local emergency department (ED). PROPOSED SERVICES: The proposed project will address the need for comprehensive primary health care services in the community and target population. By increasing availability of non-traditional hours, CSC will address the gap in healthcare access that often results in inappropriate ED use or untreated health conditions. Through the Expanded Hours project, CSC will add 15 total hours of operation at five total sites. This will include expanded evening hours (until 8pm) at the Bishopville Center, Cheraw Center, Bennettsville Center, and Rosa Lee Gerald Center; and expanded weekend hours (Saturday 9am to 1pm) at the Chesterfield Center. Medical, substance use disorder (SUD), and enabling services will be provided during the expanded hours, and Year 1 staffing will include 0.425 FTE Family Nurse Practitioner, 0.425 FTE Nurse (LPN), 0.425 FTE Medical Assistant (CMA/RMA), 0.425 FTE Lab Tech, and 1.0 FTE Community Health Worker (CHW). A second 0.425 FTE Medical Assistant (CMA/RMA) will be added in Year 2. POPULATION GROUPS TO BE SERVED: CSC is available to serve the general community, but prioritizes serving low-income individuals, including Medicaid recipients and the underinsured/uninsured. All presenting patients will receive high-quality services on an SFDS, regardless of ability to pay, and CSC will work to reduce barriers to care with an array enabling services. Expanded hours funding will foster a more accessible and patient-centered service delivery system, while reducing disparities within the community.
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).