Obama administration hands out money for school clinics

The Obama administration Thursday announced $95 million in grants to 278 school-based health clinics in the first round of awards made possible by the healthcare law the president signed last year.

The new law provides $200 million in total for these clinics as part of a broader initiative to support healthcare providers serving needy populations and to bolster preventive healthcare, which many experts believe is crucial to controlling the nation’s burgeoning health tab.

Like much of the new act, the grants for school-based clinics have been controversial.

Earlier this year, House Republicans, led by Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), tried unsuccessfully to eliminate the grants, calling them “reckless mandatory funding.”

Burgess and other Republican lawmakers charged that it was foolhardy to fund centers without providing money to run them. The grants can only be used for capital projects, such as equipment or renovations.

Administration officials said that clinics could only get the money if they demonstrate that they have the funding to deliver health services.

And they stressed Thursday that the money would make a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of children. “

“I saw firsthand working in Chicago, where 85% of our students live below the poverty line, the desperate need for school-based health clinics,” said Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who ran the Chicago Public Schools before coming to Washington.

“We saw attendance go up. We saw grades go up. We saw children who were sometimes dealing with tremendous physical and emotional challenges getting the support they need. … These services can literally be life-transforming.”

Duncan also said the clinics can promote healthier behavior and help combat obesity.

There are about 2,000 school-based clinics nationwide, many of which are operated in partnership with local community health centers, hospitals and public health departments.

According to the administration, the 278 clinics awarded grants Thursday serve about 790,000 patients and will be able to reach an additional 440,000 patients.

Noam.levey@latimes.com