U.S. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley announced last week that East Boston Neighborhood Health Center (EBNHC) could receive up to $14.7 in grant money through the American Rescue Plan.
EBNHC has been serving patients from Eastie, Chelsea, Revere, Winthrop and the South End throughout the pandemic with increased testing and vaccination programs.
Pressley said EBNHC will join 12 other Community Health Centers in her 7th Congressional District in sharing a total of $56,833,875 in American Rescue Plan funds.
Once all the details are ironed out EBNHC can use the funds to expand their COVID-19 vaccination and treatment services. The resources are part of the American Rescue Plan’s investments to expand access to vaccines in historically underserved communities.
“Throughout this pandemic and well before it, our Community Health Centers (CHC) have served as a critical lifeline for our most vulnerable communities in the Massachusetts 7th and all across the Commonwealth, providing life-saving and patient-centered resources to our children, people experiencing homelessness, immigrant families and veterans,” said Pressley. “With our vaccination efforts underway, this new funding through the American Rescue Plan will go a long way toward helping our CHCs—which play a central role in working towards equitable vaccine distribution—continue their important work.”
EBNHC can use the funding to expand COVID-19 vaccinations, testing and treatment for vulnerable populations; deliver preventive and primary health care services to people at higher risk for COVID-19; and expand health centers’ operational capacity during the pandemic and beyond, including modifying and improving physical infrastructure and adding mobile units.
Pressley said she has been a steadfast champion for community-based health care programs throughout her time in Congress. She is an active member of the Congressional Community Health Centers Caucus and has advocated for increased resources for Community Health Centers before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.