HOUSTON, TX | by Todd Ackerman | March 27, 2019
Original article can be found at: https://www.chron.com
The University of Houston will open a safety-net health clinic for low-income people in the area Monday, a key initial component of its planned medical school.
The university is partnering with Georgetown-headquartered Lone Star Circle of Care, which already operates 19 such clinics around the state. The clinics, known as federally qualified health centers, provide health care to patients regardless of their ability to pay.
“This is really a win-win all the way around,” said Dr. Stephen Spann, founding dean of the UH medical school. “It helps us in our mission to provide care to this community. It provides us with a clinic on campus where we can train students and where our faculty can be involved in the care of patients and it partners us with an excellent FQHC.”
Federally qualified health centers charge patients without health insurance on a sliding scale, which is much needed aid in the Third Ward area UH’s medical school plans to serve. Area residents experience higher percentages of chronic disease such as diabetes and hypertension than the greater Houston population.
The clinic should also help UH’s bid for accreditation of the medical school, which would be the first in Houston in nearly half a century. The plan has been approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, but still needs accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education.
Spann said Tuesday he plans to submit accreditation application materials this week. The LCME process typically takes nearly a year, which would allow UH to begin enrolling students in fall 2020, its target.
UH is also waiting for funding from the Texas Legislature. The Legislature’s current appropriations bill includes a $20 million rider for the school.
Plans call for the UH school to focus on training primary-care doctors to practice in underserved areas, a huge need in Houston and the state.
todd.ackerman@chron.com
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