Maui Health Centers Eligible for Federal Funds to Help Uninsured

Mālama I Ke Ola, Community Clinic of Maui Health Center, photo by Wendy Osher.

By Wendy Osher

The US Department of Health and Human Services announced new funds available to health centers in Hawaiʻi.

The $1.15 million appropriation for the state is part of a larger $150 million national earmark, designed to help uninsured individuals gain affordable health insurance coverage and boost enrollment efforts, officials said.

There are a total of 14 health centers in Hawaiʻi that provide care to an estimated 144,427 individuals, according to Health and Human Service officials.

Health centers eligible to apply for funding in Maui County are: the Community Clinic of Maui in Wailuku, and the Hāna Community Health Center in East Maui; as well as the Lānaʻi Community Health Center and Molokaʻi ʻOhana Health Care on the outer islands.

The funds are made available through the federal Affordable Care Act.

“Investing in health centers for outreach and enrollment assistance provides one more way the Obama Administration is helping consumers understand their options and enroll in affordable coverage,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius in a press release today.

With these new funds, department officials say health centers will be able to “hire new staff, train existing staff, and conduct community outreach events and other educational activities.”