The role of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is to improve healthcare for individuals who are geographically isolated or vulnerable in terms of their medical or economic situations. The programs initiated by the organization aid populations in need of quality primary care, individuals diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, single mothers, and pregnant women. Under HRSA’s (2019) vision of “Healthy communities, healthy people,” the agency aims to enhance the health outcomes of the population experiencing health disparities by giving them access to high-quality services, training a skilled medical workforce, and introducing innovative programs.
In Clark County, Nevada, with the median household income of $54,882, the funding for the 2019 fiscal year from HRSA amounted to $15,974,910 (“HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County,” 2019). The main programs on which the organization focused in the country include the Health Center Program, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, National Health Service Corps, Nurse Corps, Health Professions Training Grants, Rural Health, as well as Maternal and Child Health initiatives (“HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County,” 2019). For example, the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program received $7,660,781 from the organization to establish a comprehensive system of primary care associated with the diagnosis, including medication provision, as well as essential support services intended to improve health outcomes of the target group and reduce the barriers to effective care within the region (“HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County,” 2019). The second largest-funded initiative for the fiscal year of 2019 was the Health Center Program that received $6,382,798 from the organization (“HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County,” 2019). The program was intended to enable patient-directed organizations to deliver affordable, high-quality, accessible, and cost-effective primary healthcare to the population.
Nevada, with a population of 2,887,725, received HRSA funding for 2019 in the amount of $53,903,481 for a total of 42 awards (“HRSA fact sheet FY Nevada,” 2019). The most considerable focus of the organization when it comes to the state was placed on the Health Center Program that received $17,954,289 (“HRSA fact sheet FY Nevada,” 2019). The program’s importance is associated with the need to ensure that patients with low pay ability can have access to high-quality and affordable healthcare services throughout the entire geographical area. The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program received the second-largest amount of a financial award in the state, with $17,954,289 given to six unique awardees (“HRSA fact sheet FY Nevada,” 2019). In terms of other programs related to the Health Center Program, Nevada only received funding for State and Regional Primary Care Association with $715,506 (“HRSA fact sheet FY Nevada,” 2019). Within the healthcare systems initiatives implemented in the state, the organization supports a variety of grant programs associated with organ donation and poison control centers. Significantly, the agency allocates donated organs for transplantation, with 211 transplants performed for the residents of the state in 2019 as compared to 39,091 nationwide (“HRSA fact sheet FY nation,” 2019).
The total nationwide funding by HRSA amounted to $9,937,520,174 for 5,244 awards (“HRSA fact sheet FY nation,” 2019). Throughout the country, around 1,400 health center grantees worked on improving and expanding healthcare services for underserved populations, focusing on a wide variety of programs. The Health Center Program received $5,049,200,309 in 2019 compared to $6,382,798 allocated for Clark County (“HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County,” 2019). Importantly, Clark County received no funding for programs relating to School-Based Health Centers, State, and Regional Primary Care Associations, National Health Centers for Training and Technical Assistance initiatives, the Health Center Controlled Network (“HRSA fact sheet FY nation,” 2019). On a national level, all of the mentioned programs received funding ranging from $11 to $57 million, while Clark County received $0 (“HRSA fact sheet FY nation,” 2019).
When it comes to Mendocino County, California, with the median household income of $46,528, which lower than in Clark Country, Nevada, and nationwide, the total funding amounted to $15,167,034 for eight unique awardees (“HRSA fact sheet FY Mendocino,” 2019). The majority of the awarded funds were allocated to the Health Center Program that received $12,943,597 (“HRSA fact sheet FY Mendocino,” 2019). Similar to Clark County, Mendocino received no financial support for related programs, and the next-largest financial aid was given to Rural Health under the guidance of the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. The county received $1,797,001 for the program intended to target the population living in total areas and meet its needed on the community level (“HRSA fact sheet FY California,” 2019). Compared to nationwide and Clark County data on the HIV/AIDS program, Mendocino received the least funding with $426,436, indicating the lower need of the region for the initiatives that address such a specific health need. In California, HRSA provided 93 total awards to target the needs of 60 unique awardees for the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, with the 2019 funding amounting to $291,104,657 in total (“HRSA fact sheet FY California,” 2019). Therefore, the organization is highly committed to the initiatives targeting vulnerable populations who require ongoing support in medication supply and health center access.
References
HRSA fact sheet FY California. (2019). Web.
HRSA fact sheet FY Clark County. (2019). Web.
HRSA fact sheet FY Mendocino. (2019). Web.
HRSA fact sheet FY nation. (2019). Web.
HRSA fact sheet FY Nevada. (2019). Web.
HRSA. (2019). About HRSA. Web.