We see health centers as a centerpiece in creating an abundant pipeline of skilled professionals who have the infrastructure necessary to provide exceptional care to patients. As a professional home for this skilled and diverse workforce, access to professional development and mental health services, systems to maintain a sustainable workload, and pathways for growth must be in place. We believe community health centers should have a culture of continuous learning and growth at every level in their organizations.
The Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Labor, and Department of Education must improve their collaboration in order to bolster the health care workforce pipeline to address the staffing crisis.
Transforming the delivery of care to a value-based model is critical to retaining FQHC workforce.
Training programs based at FQHCs are successful. Teaching Health Centers have trained 1,500 new physicians and dentists, the majority serving in underserved areas. The program works and should be expanded.
FQHCs are a source of mentorship and professional pathway programs within underserved communities. This pathway should start with outreach to elementary aged children all the way to career entry.
FQHC workforces must reflect the populations they serve. This kind of representation increases patient trust, health care quality, and health outcomes.
Given their vast cultural and linguistic expertise, FQHCs are critical partners to recipients of Medicare Graduate Medical Education dollars in training future health professionals and should be recognized as such.
Advance the Developing the Community Health Workforce Act (to be introduced), which:
Address health care workforce burnout and build resilience. Congress should invest funding in evidence-based interventions at community health centers to ensure that providers are connected to behavioral health resources and peer support.
Adjust health center reimbursement to acknowledge workforce shortages and staffing costs. Congress should direct relief to health centers struggling to recruit and retain health care workers through tax credits, increased FMAP to allow for higher Medicaid reimbursements, and other mechanisms.
Recognize pharmacists as providers under the Medicare program. Currently, pharmacists are not recognized as providers under Medicare Part B and therefore cannot directly bill for most of the clinical services they provide.
Establish and disseminate leadership training and incentives for FQHC workforce, to encourage and facilitate career ladder mobility within health centers.