Southern Illinois University’s Center for Family Medicine soon will be able to satisfy a growing demand for health care services in the Springfield area. In an area with a 42.4 percent poverty rate and an 18.2 percent unemployment rate, CFM’s services are highly sought after.
CFM is a federally qualified health center, providing services to patients who are either uninsured or covered under Medicaid or Medicare. CFM is academically affiliated with Memorial Health System, one of Illinois’ leading health care organizations. MHS is the property owner of CFM.
“We’re honored to partner with the medical school on this expansion, which will provide better care at lower costs to the uninsured and underserved people in our region,” said Edgar J. Curtis, MHS president and CEO. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for our community.”
In 2015, CFM began to plan for an expansion to accommodate an average of 200 to 250 new patients per month in addition to the 19,000 patients it sees annually. With this expansion, MHS and CFM will strengthen their dedication to patient care in Illinois.
IFF’s $7 million new markets tax credit allocation will help finance the construction of a 30,315-square-foot addition to CFM’s existing building, doubling its size. Additional tax credits are coming from Cinnaire and JP Morgan Chase. NMTCs attract capital in high-need areas by providing investors — in this case JP Morgan Chase — with a federal tax credit.
The $25 million expansion will allow CFM to serve an additional 3,000 patients annually and accommodate an additional 20,000 annual patient visits. Construction is expected to be complete by October 2016.