U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra paid a visit Wednesday, July 31, to the federally funded Union Community Care Health Center on Lebanon’s largely Hispanic north side.
The Lancaster County-based nonprofit provides primary medical and dental care, behavioral health, and social services to low-income families.
In Lebanon, it operates a pharmacy, urgent care center, medical offices, and behavioral health offices in two adjacent buildings at 920 Church St., plus a dental center at 101 S. 9th St.
Union Community Care was formed in 2021 by the merger of Lancaster Health Center and Welsh Mountain Health Centers. It is a federally qualified organization that receives funding from the U.S. Health Resource & Services Administration.
Read More: Lancaster Health Center and Welsh Mountain Health Centers announce new name for merged center
Becerra, accompanied by Union CEO Alisa Jones, started his visit with a tour of Union’s pharmacy, which Jones said is the only remaining pharmacy on the north side of the city.
He then sat down for over an hour with the facility’s staff and Hispanic community leaders, who told him that the Lebanon facility, one of 18 operated by Union, and the services it provides to low-income residents is vital to keeping the north side of town from becoming a medical desert.
Throughout his visit, Becerra emphasized the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to protect and strengthen the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, lower premiums, and expand access to affordable health care in low-income communities.
Referring to the center, which opened in 2019 as Lebanon Community Health Center, Jones told the secretary that “the community has made it their own. Folks who work here are from the community, and that makes a difference.”
“If anything goes wrong,” Jones said, “I’ll get a call on the phone, and the caller will say, ‘Alisa, today I sent you somebody and this or that was wrong,’ and I’ll say, ‘Let’s get it fixed.’ The community is totally invested.”
At the end of the meeting, Becerra told the center’s employees and supporters, “Don’t stop. We’re going to try to continue to build up community health care centers,” telling them that “President Biden and Vice President Harris have put more money into the federally qualified community health centers than any administration.”
Before leaving Lebanon for an appearance in Harrisburg, Becerra praised Union’s Lebanon staff.
“You can’t fake sincerity. You can’t fake appreciation,” he told LebTown. “What I saw was people who very much appreciate that in their community. They have access to quality care and they can afford it.”
Becerra has been HHS secretary since March 2021. Before that, he served four years as the attorney general of California and represented Los Angeles in the U.S. House of Representatives for 14 years, four as chair of the House Democratic Caucus. He has recently been rumored to be considering a run for California governor.
More photos of the visit
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra visited Union Community Care Health Center in Lebanon on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. (Will Trostel)
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