HORSNBY BEND, TX | by Staff Report | July 28, 2019
Original article can be found at: https://www.statesman.com
Continuing efforts to expand health care services to low-income residents in eastern Travis County, Central Health is moving forward with plans to open a new primary care health and wellness center in Hornsby Bend.
Travis County Commissioners last week approved the health district’s 10-acre land purchase where the new center will sit. The new center will be operated by CommUnityCare Health Centers, a system of Central Health-funded community health centers. A location is planned for both a permanent health center and a temporary clinic that will serve the community until the center is built.
“Our low-income residents are moving East,” said Dr. Guadalupe Zamora, chairman of Central Health’s board of managers. “We don’t currently have many centers out there. We need to be where people need us most.”
In the last two years, Central Health has been working to expand services in eastern Travis County by opening temporary clinics, planning permanent clinics, extending hours at existing clinics and proving free transportation for patients. Central Health leaders have focused specifically on Del Valle and Creedmoor, Austin’s Colony and Hornsby Bend, Manor and Colony Park, as well as Pflugerville.
“We know these areas need service, we know there’s a medical desert out there and we’re going to bring it to them,” Zamora said.
By 2022, low-income residents in the Greater Hornsby Bend area are expected to make up about 17% of the population, compared to the 12% county-wide average, according to Central Health. Last year, Central Health served about 1 in 7 Travis County residents.
The center, to be located at the corner of Gilbert and Sandifer streets, will be a comprehensive primary care and wellness center that offers chronic disease management, vaccines, pharmacy services, routine check-ups, behavioral health and enrollment specialists, said Mike Geeslin, president and CEO of Central Health.
Geeslin said the larger vision for the center is to go beyond treating illness to support healthy living and wellness. In the long term, he said, they might offer services they have at Central Health’s Southeast Health and Wellness Center, such as cooking and exercise classes and a seasonal farmer’s market.
Central Health employees said the property, priced at $770,000, was allocated in their yearly budget, but did not have estimated building and operating costs. Central Health is also buying a 1,200 square-foot temporary clinic at 14312 Hunters Bend Road, located just a few blocks away from the planned center, to ensure they can serve the community immediately. It is set to open this fall.
Manuel Longoria Jr., a pastor who lives in Hornsby Bend, said the new center would be a tremendous asset to the community which is undeserved in many ways, having only a few small grocery stores and no nearby health centers.
“We’re missing things other communities take for granted,” Longoria said.
Matt Balthazar, vice president of health center advancement at CommUnityCare, said it is difficult for Hornsby Bend residents to access healthy food, among other amenities.
“Transportation is difficult,” Balthazar said. “There is only one way in and out by car.”
Zamora added that many residents do not own cars, and have been waiting for a local CommUnityCare center for a long time.
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