CPACS Cosmo Community Health Center
6185 Buford Highway, Norcross
770-446-0929
www.cpacscosmo.org
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Not having health insurance is sort of like living in a house with no roof on it. More people than one might suspect find themselves in this situation daily. In the last quarter of 2014, 12.9 percent of U.S. adults did not have a health insurance, according to a Gallup survey.
While this statistic represents a 4.2 percent decrease since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act in 2013, the numbers go up when minorities are put under the magnifying glass. In the case of Hispanic adults, for example, almost a third of this population lacks health insurance, according to Gallup.
In Gwinnett County in particular – where a large percentage of the population is comprised of minorities, the need for healthcare has been growing. The Center for Pan Asian Community Services has been working for over 30 years to assist individuals from Asia and the Pacific Islands, as well as other ethnic groups such as Latinos, who require low cost health services. For many immigrants, legal status is often the greatest barrier to obtaining a policy.
For the last year and a half, CPACS has also operated the Cosmo Community Health Center, which provides low cost medical services to patients whose native language is Spanish, Korean, Chinese Mandarin, Vietnamese, Nepali and Burmese. It is the only health center of its kind in the state.
In celebration of National Health Center Week, CPACS held an open house with the goal of raising awareness about the services Cosmo Community Health Center provides.
According to President and CEO Chaiwon Kim, the center, at Buford Highway and Jimmy Carter Boulevard, “has helped more than 5,000 clients since opening in April.” Typically, a patient who receives medical attention at a community health center saves an average of $1,263 annually compared with someone who uses a conventional clinic, according to estimates by the National Association of Community Health Centers.
At Cosmo Community Health Center, patients are able to take advantage of a variety of services that include primary care, pediatrics, pharmacy, dentistry, and mental health services.
Local politicians attended the open house including Pedro “Pete” Marín, representative for District 96, who considered it “a success that in a year and a half the Cosmo Community Health Center has assisted 5,000 clients.”
“I predict many more patients, and more patients will mean more need and this will help CPACS to grow,” he added.
Scott Holcomb, representative for District 81, said it was “extraordinary that they’re able to provide truly outstanding medical care to the community, particularly the underserved and underprivileged communities.”
Gwinnett County officials also honored CPACS’s work with a ‘Proclamation for National Health Center Week.’
“Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners and Gwinnett County Government are really proud to have this resource right here in Gwinnett County to serve our indigent clients, especially the least-served community,” said Nicole L. Hendrickson, Community Outreach Program Director for the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners.
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