First District Congressman Earl L. “Buddy” Carter visited McKinney Medical Center on Friday September 6.
Carter met with McKinney Center supporters, staff and board members to give them a brief update on the short September legislative session, which resumed Monday, September 9.
He focused on items which will affect health care in rural communities.
“We have a lot to do,” said Carter, who was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2015. “We have to get a budget done, including funding for FQHCs (Federally Qualified Health Centers). That’s going to be very important.”
The Republican who’s seeking another two-year term, went on to talk about two key pieces of legislation impacting rural communities.
“One is the Telehealth Modernization Act which I’ve introduced to the Energy and Commerce Committee,” said Carter.
“During the pandemic, telehealth went from being a novelty to an integral part of our health care system. Telehealth is so very important particularly in our rural areas where we don’t have as many providers and specialists.”
The second topic Carter touched on was the 340B program. According to www.commonwealthfund. org, “the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program allows qualifying hospitals and clinics that treat lowincome and uninsured patients to buy outpatient prescription drugs at a discount of between 25 and 50 percent. The program is intended to help safetynet health care providers stretch their financial resources to reach more financially vulnerable patients and deliver comprehensive services.”
“The 340 B program was specifically intended for FQHCs,” said Carter.
“We are trying to make sure the program stays available for FQHCs, for rural hospitals which it was intended for. It has unfortunately proliferated into a program that is being misused. We want to make sure we’ve got transparency in the program.
“I speak as a pharmacist now,” he continued. “A big part of health care is medication therapy. When I was practicing in nursing homes, one of the primary reasons people were in nursing homes was medication administration because they needed the structure. We need to make sure people are getting their medications, which is why the 340 B Program is so important.”
Carter went on to discuss the need to educate all members of Congress on the importance of FQHCs and the 340B program.
“This is a citizen legislature. They need to be edu-cated. A lot of them don’t even know what a FQHC is, particulalry those in a more urban area and don’t understand how important it is in the rural area. We were talking about transportation in this area and how much of a barrier it has been and continues to be. A lot of people don’t understand that. That’s why we’ve got to educate members of congress.”
McKinney Medical Center, a federally funded 501c3, is in partnership with Georgia Legal Services.
“McKinney is unusual because we have what is called a medical legal partnership,” said attorney Racheal G. Henderson of Georgia Legal Services. “The attorneys from my program come on site and see the patients we refer so the center provides comprehensive health and legal services.”
“Pastor Reverend Arnold McKinney wrote the original grant that created the McKinney Community Health Care Center in 1995,” said Henderson. “We noticed there was a lack of adequate health care for low income individuals as well as a lack of access to legal assistance in this area of the state.”
McKinney Medical Center has locations in Ware, Camden, Charlton, Bacon, and Brantley counties. Visit www.mckinneymedicalcenter. com for more information.
Georgia First District Congressman Earl L. “Buddy” Carter talks with diners Friday afternoon at B Mac’s Buffet as part of his “Take Buddy to Work” initiative. Carter, the incumbent, helped the restaurant’s wait staff take care of customers gathered for lunch. Photo by RICK NOLTE
