New and Noteworthy
25th Anniversary Highlight: How Data Informs Our Resources and Technical Assistance
For our final 25th anniversary article, we thought we’d highlight how our proprietary database is a key asset in enabling Capital Link to help health centers plan for the future. Data analytics and the capacity to understand and use information can help health centers optimize performance and ultimately improve the patient experience, including quality, satisfaction, health outcomes, and reduced cost of care. While most health centers monitor clinical quality measures and set performance goals for those measures, they have more limited expertise in understanding and acting upon financial and operational metrics.
Capital Link maintaines a database of health center audited financial statements for approximately 85% of all health centers and HRSA Uniform Data System (UDS) data for 100% of health centers annually from 2005 to the present. This database enables us to monitor trends and merge financial and operational information to produce comparative metrics and benchmarking on over 250 financial and operational measures. We prepare actionable data analytic reports focused on the most important metrics to monitor and providing comparisons to relevant, similar peers (based on size of center, location such as rural or urban, or other selected characteristics) to assist in performance improvement activities.
Coupled with our experience in the industry, this database gives Capital Link the unique ability to help health centers identify and understand the drivers of successful operations, adopt best practices, capitalize on their strengths, implement needed improvements, and leverage the resources they need to be successful—thereby contributing to their efforts to achieve the “quadruple aim.”
Learning Collaboratives Begin in January: Free with HRSA Support
In 2020, Capital Link will be launching a third year of our two learning collaboratives. Our collaboratives are designed to help increase the capacity of health centers in a peer-to-peer learning format. Conducted through a series of webinars, virtual discussions, and in-person meetings facilitated by Capital Link, our collaboratives are focused on topics such as planning and financing capital development projects or forming non-traditional partnerships with organizations to address Social Determinants of Health. Learning collaboratives are offered free of charge with support from the Health Resources and Services Administration.
We are currently accepting applications for the following two collaboratives, both of which are launching in January 2020:
Capital Expansion for Health and Housing Partnerships
This learning collaborative is intended for health centers interested in expanding their health services in collaboration with housing facilities. These facility collaborations are aimed at addressing gaps in a community’s housing and health infrastructure and provide opportunities to advance health centers’ engagement in social determinants of health. Learn more here, and attend the introductory webinar:
Introduction to Capital Expansion for Health and Housing Partnerships Learning Collaborative
Tuesday, December 3, 2019, 1:00-2:00 pm ET
Capital Projects: Planning, Financing and Completing
Designed to assist health centers that anticipate the need for a capital project during the next one-to-five years, this learning collaborative will provide practical direction and tools for planning, financing, and completing a capital project. Learn more here, and attend the introductory webinar:
Introduction to Capital Projects: Planning, Financing and Completing Learning Collaborative
Tuesday, January 14, 2020, 2:00-3:00 pm ET
For more information on our Learning Collaboratives, please contact Jonathan Chapman, Chief Project Officer, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Capital Link provides technical assistance to health centers interested in planning a capital project and understanding whether and how to apply to the LGP. Visit our webpage for more information. Fact sheets are available here.
The HRSA Health Center Facility Loan Guarantee Program (LGP)
Many health centers face challenges obtaining affordable loans for their capital projects and/or experience delays in securing loans because of credit or collateral shortfalls. These factors can result in protracted development schedules and higher costs for capital projects. These delays result in reduced access to care for patients and sub-optimal working conditions for health center staff. The HRSA LGP can enhance the health center’s credit profile, reducing the lender’s risk and allowing them to lend to health centers under more favorable terms than would have been possible otherwise. For some centers, the guarantee might mean the difference between getting a “yes” or a “no” from a lender, while for others, it may allow the lender to offer a lower interest rate, a longer fixed-rate term, or a higher loan-to-value ratio.
Congress appropriated new funds for the LGP in 2018, enabling HRSA to update and modernize the program to provide guarantees for almost $900 million in new loans to health centers. The guarantee can cover up to 80% of the principal amount of loans made by non-federal lenders for the construction, renovation and modernization of medical facilities operated by health centers.
HRSA is accepting applications for the LGP. Interested health centers should contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Visit https://bphc.hrsa.gov/programopportunities/loan-guarantee-program.html for details. Capital Link is also available to assist centers that are considering applying to the program. For assistance, contact Jonathan Chapman, Chief Project Officer, Capital Link at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..