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HealthPoint Family Care seeks buyer after losing federal grant

Owenton News-Herald - 7/1/2018

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HealthPoint Family Care and Drs. Johnson, Smalara, and Baumann are actively pursuing interested medical groups to assume the practice in Owenton.

HealthPoint will not set a closing date until a successor is in place. This change was prompted when HealthPoint was not awarded the Federal Grant for Owen County. HealthPoint is a federally qualified health center (FQHC).All FQHC's receive annual federal grants to help fund operations in specific counties.

In 2015, HealthPoint Family Care and other medical practices were approached by New Horizons asking for their interest in assuming the hospital and the physician practice of Drs. Johnson, Smalara and Baumann. HealthPoint did not have the expertise to operate a hospital but did have interest in serving the community through the management of the physician practice.

The physicians decided to join HealthPoint in December 2015. HealthPoint opened the Owenton office on Feb. 2, 2016, with the intention of pursuing a federal grant to offset the cost of operating the Owenton practice.

In the fall of 2017, HealthPoint and Triad, another FQHC, both applied for the one federal grant for the direct service areas of Owen, Carrol, and Gallatin. In December of 2017, the government awarded the three year (2018-2020) competitive federal grant to Triad and not to HealthPoint. Because Triad receives federal funding for Owen county and HealthPoint does not, HealthPoint has decided to focus providing care to patients in counties where HealthPoint does receive federal funding and where no other FQHC with federal funding operates.

Once a successor is in place, HealthPoint will notify patients.

HealthPoint and the physicians will be regularly communicating with staff to keep them informed. HealthPoint will ensure a smooth transition for patients and staff, according to a press release. It is HealthPoint's priority that there is no lapse in operations and plans to close only when the successor can open the next day, the release added.