CLAY CENTER - Clay County Medical Center (CCMC) has been awarded a $198,116 grant through the Health Resources & Services Administration as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
The grant is part of the Rural Health Clinic Vaccine Confidence (RHCVC) program, which provides up to $49,529 per rural health clinic location. CCMC will receive funds in support of vaccine administration at Clay Center Family Physicians, Clyde Family Physicians, Linn Family Physicians, and Riley Family Physicians.
“The additional funding will provide opportunities to reinforce vaccine information, education, and resources throughout our rural health clinics and surrounding areas. This initiative covers a broad range of efforts; including improving health care in rural areas by reinforcing basic messaging about prevention and treatment of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases,” Austin M. Gillard, CEO of CCMC, said.
The RHCVC Program is an initiative to improve vaccine confidence and counter vaccine hesitancy in rural communities where COVID-19 vaccine uptake lags in comparison to more populated areas. CCMC is well positioned to disseminate information about how and where to get vaccinated at the local level, and to coordinate with existing vaccination sites to identify strategies to increase vaccine confidence.