National Health Center Week 2020 - Callen-Lorde

National Health Center Week 2020

National Health Center Week (August 9 – 15) is an annual celebration with the goal of raising awareness about the mission and accomplishments of America’s health centers over the past five decades.

Community Health Centers like Callen-Lorde are part of the fabric of safety net health centers resulting from the community health and civil rights movements to ensure people living in poverty had access to healthcare.

To celebrate the role of Community Health Centers, here are 5 actions to take this week:

  1. Write to Governor Cuomo and urge him to reverse the Medicaid carve out plan, and refrain from reducing services for devastated communities during a moment when we have already lost so much. Write Governor Cuomo here. (Copy/paste sample sample message here.)
  2. Help #ProtectTransHealth by helping stop the Trump-Pence proposed rule rolling back the Health Care Rights Law! Submit a comment here.
  3. Protect New York’s congressional seats and funding for infrastructure, housing, education and more by filling out the US Census! Fill out the census here.
  4. Urge lawmakers to repeal the #WalkingWhileTrans Ban! Black and brown women deserve to walk the streets safely without fear of being harassed, profiled, and arrested. Sign here to help repeal the ban!
  5. Make your voice heard in the upcoming election and VOTE! Register or update your voting registration here or request an absentee ballot.

Community Health Centers serve as the beacon of strength, service, and care in our communities. In moments of pain and loss, we offer support and love. In moments of triumph, we offer hope and a vision for the future. Let’s come together this week to celebrate the roles Community Health Centers have played in both our recent moments of loss and triumph.  This National Health Center Week honors those front line providers, staff, and beloved patients who lost their lives during the (ongoing) COVID-19 pandemic. From the very beginning of the crisis, Community Health Centers began finding innovative ways to provide preventative and primary care to their patients. During this week of remembrance, light a candle for those community health leaders, patients that we lost. As we commemorate those lives and celebrate the future of Community Health, let’s shine a light across the country that will embody the future of primary health care aces for underserved populations. Shine a light on your Community Health Center and share the value that it brings to everyone who it touches.