Wes Hickman or Kevin Bish

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today announced health care centers in Sumter and Hartsville will receive grants from President Bush’s Health Centers Initiative administered by the U.S. Department Health and Human Services. Sumter Family Health Center will receive $595,833 and CareSouth Carolina in Hartsville will receive $108,333. The funds will enable both facilities to assist more individuals. “Community health centers are a vital part of South Carolina’s medical infrastructure,” Graham said. “Health centers are an efficient means of helping those who lack or have inadequate health care insurance. They provide medical services to thousands of people who would otherwise end up in a hospital emergency room.” President Bush’s Health Centers Initiative will add new health centers throughout the nation and expand coverage of those currently in existence. Health centers provide preventative and primary care to patients regardless of their ability to pay. Charges for health care services are set according to income and for some low-income patients fees are waived.