Nassau County Fighting Health Care Disparity
 with a new Roosevelt-Freeport Health Center

For immediate release: Wednesday, October 19, 2005

(Freeport, N.Y.) – County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi announced today that a new state-of-the-art Roosevelt-Freeport Health Center will be built on North Main Street in Freeport. After a decade long vision of a new health care facility, a new 12,000 square foot building will be constructed, housing a health center, a Woman Infant and Children (WIC) program office, and an office for Memorial Economic Development Corporation without interruption of services to the community. Construction will commence in April. Joining the County Executive at the future site of the facility was Reverend Reginald Tuggle, President, Memorial Economic Development Corporation, Daniel Kane, President, Nassau Health Care Corporation, Larry Gottlieb, Chairman of the Nassau Health Care Corporation Board and members of the Nassau County Legislature.

“Health care disparity is a major concern for families in Freeport and Roosevelt.  The working partnership we have formed between Nassau County, Memorial Economic Development Corporation and Nassau Health Care Corporation is set to take this problem on head first”, said Suozzi.  “It is my hope that this facility will not only address the health care needs of the community, but that it also serves as an anchor for future economic development.” 

Deputy Presiding Officer Roger Corbin (D-Westbury) said, "The County's investment in this particular center represents a practical approach towards ensuring that the quality of health care services delivered to the residents of Freeport/Roosevelt is equal and consistent."    Legislator Kevan Abrahams (D-Hempstead), an ardent supporter of this project said, "Providing top quality and accessible health care to my district has been one of my top priorities and I am gratified to see the process begin”.

Nassau County will borrow $3.5 million in Section 108 HUD funds to finance the center.  Nassau County also applied funds from an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Brownfields Assessment grant to perform Phase I and Phase II Environmental Assessments of the property.  Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy secured a Health and Services Administration (HRSA) grant in the amount of $366,000 for project costs.

The Roosevelt and Freeport communities were identified as Medically Underserved Area/Medically Underserved Population (MUA/MUP) by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Bureau of Primary Health Care.  In Roosevelt, 49.3% of the population consists of low/moderate income persons with Freeport’s population shows 42.3%.  Furthermore, the disability rate in those areas is an alarming 33.2% for Roosevelt and 22.7% for Freeport, with the national average being 19.2%.