(Host) Vermont’s eight community health centers will receive a total of nearly $5 million to help upgrade their facilities and purchase new equipment.
Senator Bernie Sanders requested the new money. He says the health centers provide essential primary care to a growing number of Vermonters:
(Sanders) "What this money will do is help these centers expand their facilities, get new equipment, move more aggressively into information technology, and basically be better prepared to treat the over 100,000 Vermonters who are now accessing the community health centers for their primary health care."
(Host) And based on the success of the Vermont Health Centers, Sanders wants to expand the program across the country.
(Sanders) "My view is that everybody in this country should have access to a doctor of their own. It keeps people healthy, it saves money, keeps people out of the hospital. And I think there’s a growing understanding that if we’re going to address the primary health care crisis in this country, that’s what we’ve got to do."
(Host) Sanders is hoping to add new community health centers in Addison County and the Bennington area by the end of the year.