Community and migrant health centers: the need for a coordinated national financing policy

This article is a descriptive revenue profile of Community and Migrant Health Centers providing preventive and primary health care services to underserved rural and urban populations throughout the United States. The study is a secondary data analysis of the 1994 Bureau Common Reporting Requirements (BCRR) reports of the 626 Community and Migrant Health Centers to the Bureau of Primary Health Care. The purpose of the analysis is to examine the sources of revenue of the centers and consider the implications for public policy. In 1994, the 626 centers generated more than $2 billion from all payment sources to care for more than 7 million users. The findings should guide and assist policy makers at the state and federal levels in first deciding the role of C/MHCs in developing managed health care strategies for underserved rural and urban populations and developing the appropriate funding policies to support these decisions.