August 3 - 9, 2025: Health Center Week

WHEREAS, health centers reduce overall costs of care by helping manage patients’ chronic conditions, which keeps them out of costlier health care settings such as hospital emergency departments; and,

WHEREAS, health centers are on the front lines of emerging health care crises, providing access to care for our nation’s veterans, addressing the opioid epidemic, and responding to public health threats in the wake of natural disasters; and,

WHEREAS, there are more than 400 Medicaid health center site locations throughout Michigan serving thousands of Medicaid beneficiaries each year; and,

WHEREAS, health centers in Michigan receive roughly 40% of their funding from Medicaid. Cuts to Medicaid will threaten health center sites across Michigan, affecting their ability to pay their employees and provide quality, affordable care. This will be devastating for the communities they serve, including rural Michiganders, veterans, and the elderly; and,

WHEREAS, Health Center Week offers the opportunity to celebrate Michigan’s health center organizations with service delivery sites, their dedicated staff, board members, patients, and all those responsible for their continued success and growth; and,

WHEREAS, in Michigan, we will keep working to protect and expand access to health care for Michiganders across the state;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Gretchen Whitmer, governor of Michigan, and Garlin Gilchrist II, lieutenant governor of Michigan, do hereby proclaim August 3-9, 2025, as Health Center Week in Michigan.