June 15, 2007
NY Awards $13 Million in SBHC Grants

New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer announced today that the state is awarding $13.2 million in grants to health care institutions that have agreed to sponsor health centers in schools. "School-based clinics are an innovative way of ensuring that children receive quality health care," Spitzer said. "These clinics provide easy access to health care professionals for checkups and treatment without missing classes and without parents needing time off from work. This is especially important for children who need routine treatment for asthma, diabetes, and other chronic conditions." The New York school-based health center program was established in 1981 and is now the largest program of its kind in the nation, with approximately 190,000 children accessing centers at 197 schools each year. The grants announced today range in size from more than $1 million to Lutheran Health Center in New York City to the smallest grant—$9,942—to a sponsor in the western part of the state.