National Health Center Week, 2013

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Title 3--
The President

Proclamation 9002 of August 9, 2013

National Health Center Week, 2013

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Community health centers play a critical role in
providing affordable, high-quality preventive and
primary health care to millions of Americans. From
urban centers to rural towns, they offer vital services
regardless of ability to pay--services that help
patients stay healthy and avoid emergency room visits.
During National Health Center Week, we recognize health
centers' significant contributions to keeping America
healthy, and we offer our continuing support to the
dedicated providers who operate them.

Today, health centers operate thousands of clinics
across our country. One in every fifteen people living
in the United States depends on their services. They
are an important source of jobs in many low-income
communities, employing more than 148,000 people
nationwide. And with clinical and support staff who are
responsive to their communities' needs and cultures,
health centers are important partners in our efforts to
reduce health disparities. From coast to coast, they
coordinate care and build professional, compassionate
health care teams focused on improving patient
outcomes.

My Administration has worked to strengthen this
essential network. Through the Affordable Care Act and
the Recovery Act, we have made significant investments
that have helped health centers expand their work,
which is now reaching more than 20 million people each
year.

As millions of Americans gain access to more health
insurance options through the Affordable Care Act,
health centers remain as valuable as ever. They help
community members understand their options, determine
their eligibility, and review possibilities for
financial assistance. With support and funding from the
health care law, health centers are also helping the
uninsured enroll in plans made available through the
new Health Insurance Marketplace, as well as in
Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.

This week, we celebrate these valuable services and
extend our thanks to the women and men who operate
America's health centers.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim the week of August 11
through August 17, 2013, as National Health Center
Week. I encourage all Americans to celebrate this week
by visiting their local health center, meeting health
center providers, and exploring the programs they offer
to help keep families healthy.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
ninth day of August, in the year of our Lord two
thousand thirteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and thirty-
eighth.