Federally Qualified Health Center

A community-based, patient-directed health center that receives enhanced federal funding under Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act to serve medically underserved populations. FQHCs must provide care regardless of patients' ability to pay, offer a sliding fee scale, and meet comprehensive quality standards. They receive prospective payment system reimbursement from Medicaid and Medicare.

FQHCs are anchor institutions for rural and underserved health infrastructure, and they are natural deployment partners for telehealth Portal networks. Their existing relationships with uninsured and Medicaid populations, their community board governance structures, and their geographic distribution across underserved areas make them ideal host or referral partners for Portals. The RHTP's community paramedicine, CHW expansion, and technology cooperative initiatives all create opportunities for FQHCs to enhance their telehealth capabilities. In many rural communities, the local FQHC and the public library are the two most trusted public institutions — making them natural co-anchor partners for a Portal network.