Mineral County residents may soon be looking at a health center that meets the basic needs of each citizen--old or young, rich or poor--without raising local taxes.  

Last month several county residents joined with some members of the Mineral Community Hospital board of directors to form the Mineral Regional Health Center board.  The funding will come, if approved, in the form of a federal grant which is now being written. It is planned to submit it by mid-December of this year.  

In the recent Oct. 27 meeting, board members received training from Mary Beth Frideres and Marge Levine of the Montana Primary Care Association. Frideres explained the community health care systems offer many benefits to the communities they serve and are endorsed by both sides of the aisle in the U.S. Congress. Community health care centers improve access to primary/preventative care, effectively manage chronic illness, provide cost-effective care to patients and provide high quality of care.  

Health care centers also make it easier for small, rural communities to attract full-time and part-time physicians and specialists, she added. And funding for the approved health care centers comes annually from the federal budget as long as the center complies with the strict rules and regulations that are imposed.  

No one can be refused care by community health care centers if it receives federal funding, she said, but patients are expected to pay a portion of their bill on a sliding fee scale. This is reflected in the board’s mission statement which says,

“We provide access to quality comprehensive health services to all.”

It will take almost a year before the board will receive word on whether the grant proposal is accepted or not. But the prospect of being funded is good considering the historic issues of poverty in Mineral County where nearly half of the populous is considered below 20% of poverty and unemployment is estimated at nearly 10%.  

Anyone interested in learning more about the proposed community health center is invited to attend the next meeting on Dec. 2 at 11 am in the basement of the Tamarack Medical Clinic.