High-Quality Care that Saves Community Healthcare Dollars.

Over the years, Valley has served thousands of Chattahoochee Valley residents with high quality, affordable health care.  Of the 222,845 people in the Columbus Area, 8,877 were Valley patients in 2012.  Over half of this audience is designated* as the "working poor" laboring in one or more minimum wage positions.

What are FQHCs?

Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) or Community Health Centers (CHCs)...are organizations receiving federal grants under Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act, CHCs are local, non-profit, community-owned health care providers serving low-income and medically underserved communities.

What is the Role of Valley Healthcare System in the medical community?

• Valley is the only FQHC in the Chattahoochee Valley Region.  We receive an annual federal grant that helps offset 67% of costs of patient treatments.  The remainder, $1,379,221 in 2012, has to be made up from other sources of revenue.
• Other community healthcare centers that are not federally qualified are certified as "Look Alike" organizations.  These centers are not in a position to leverage Health Center Program federal dollars to help the community. In 2012 Valleys federal grant  injected $2 million health care dollars into the Columbus community.
• Valley's medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy, and optical services are open to all residents, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.  Charges for services are on a sliding fee scale based on patient or family income. No one can be turned away from Valley.

Local Emergency Room Savings through the use of Valley.

Regular users of FQHCs are far less likely to go to an ER for an avoidable event.  As the only FQHC in the region, Valley saved the Columbus Area's ERs over $ 1,179,349 over an average stay in 2012 of $1,318 per patient.

Area Hospital Savings Due to Valley Healthcare Systems.

Research has demonstrated that regular users of FQHCs have lower rates of ER usage and lower odds of potentially avoidable hospitalizations.  Valley eases the burden on stressed hospitals and ERs in the region by providing services that are lower than the average hospital visit of $17,089. In 2012 Valley saving the community an estimated $ 3,822,816 in health care dollars.

An Economic Opportunity for Columbus Region Families, Businesses, and Government

Valley Healthcare contributes to the community and local business.  Just like any other business, Valley employs people and purchases goods and services.  Each dollar paid in earnings to health care staff is spent for living expenses, rent, food, etc., at businesses who have employees, who then spend their earnings on other goods and services, and so on.  In 2012 this "ripple effect" caused an overall economic impact of 123 jobs and an estimated $7,873,845 worth of commerce in the area.