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Celebrating the grand opening of the Holy Cross Hospital Health Center for uninsured and underserved adults in Aspen Hill on April 30 are, from the left, Peter W. Monge, president and CEO, Medstar Montgomery Medical Center; Isiah Leggett, Montgomery County Executive; George Leventhal, Montgomery County Councilmember; Kevin J. Sexton, president and CEO, Holy Cross Hospital; Philip Andrews, Montgomery County Councilmember. Also in attendance was Roger Berliner, president, Montgomery County Council. View more photos on Flickr. |
Contact:
Diane Meyers, Vice President, Communications and Marketing
Phone: 301-754-7186
Email: meyerdi@holycrosshealth.org
Holy Cross Hospital of Silver Spring, Maryland yesterday celebrated the grand opening of a new primary care health center in Aspen Hill. With centers already established in Silver Spring and Gaithersburg, this new facility located at 13975 Connecticut Ave. Suite 250, represents the third Holy Cross Hospital primary care health center to provide affordable health care services to uninsured and underserved residents at least 18 years of age. It also fulfills a pledge made by Holy Cross four years ago to expand capacity in serving this population.
"If we are going to make health care affordable for individuals and government payers, we are going to have to make it better, not less available," commented Kevin J. Sexton, president and CEO, Holy Cross Hospital at the opening ceremony. "That is what our community care program is about. That is what we are committed to for the long run and that is why we are all proud to be here today," he added.
Holy Cross Hospital has already established itself as a leading safety net provider in the area with 21,349 health center patient visits at the Gaithersburg and Silver Spring facilities in fiscal 2011 (July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011.) It expects to provide 30,000 visits next year. In addition, the Holy Cross OB/GYN clinic, located at the hospital, provided over 15,000 visits to uninsured women last year.
Services at all of the Holy Cross Hospital primary care health centers are provided by a team of medical experts including physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and registered nurses and include annual screenings, chronic disease management, behavioral health, preventive care, health education, and follow-up care for emergency room and hospital visits.
The health center participates in Montgomery Cares, a public/private partnership that provides health care to low-income, uninsured Montgomery County residents through a network of clinics. Requirements for eligibility to Montgomery Cares are that a person be 18 years or older, have income under 250 percent of the federal poverty level, and live in Montgomery County.
"The cooperative effort among nonprofit community and health-based organizations helps to make the entire system of care for the uninsured and underinsured work effectively. I thank them for their vision," said Ike Leggett, Montgomery County Executive, who spoke at the opening ceremony.
Added Roger Berliner, Montgomery County Council president, "We're going to make sure our community continues to be at the forefront of providing health care to those who would not otherwise be in a position to have it."
The Holy Cross Hospital Health Centers in Aspen Hill and Gaithersburg represent collaborative partnerships with area hospitals. Suburban Hospital supports the health center in Gaithersburg and the Aspen Hill health center is supported by MedStar Montgomery Medical Center.
For additional information contact Diane Meyers, vice president, Communications and Marketing at meyerdi@holycrosshealth.org, 301-754-7186.
Aspen Hill Health Center Facts
| First full day of operation: | Tuesday, May 1, 2012 |
| Phone number: | 301-557-1940 |
| Fax number: | 301-557-1949 |
| Initial hours of operation: | Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Evening and Saturday appointments are available. |
| Anticipated number of visits: | Year 1: 8,000 | Year 2: 10,000 | Year 3: 10,000 |
| Size of facility: | 6,289 square feet |
| Services provided: | Physical exams |
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Health screening and preventive health care
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Holy Cross Hospital is one of the largest hospitals in Maryland. Founded nearly 50 years ago, today Holy Cross Hospital is a 455-bed, not-for-profit teaching hospital serving Montgomery and Prince George's counties and caring for more than 188,000 patients each year. The hospital is a member of Trinity Health of Novi, Mich., one of the largest health systems in the country.