The Associated Press

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) " Community health centers providing critical primary care to more than 350,000 of Louisiana's poorest residents say cuts to their services are possible if the federal government doesn't reauthorize a vital fund.

The Advocate reports that lawmakers have temporarily kept the national community health center fund going although it expired Sept. 30. It provides $90 million annually to Louisiana's community health centers.

Timothy Young, CEO of Open Health Care Clinic in Baton Rouge, says the $650,000 his clinic receives is set to expire in May. Young says losing that money would force them to choose how many uninsured patients can be served and whether expanding services can continue.

Republican U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy of Louisiana signed onto a bipartisan letter Tuesday urging Senate leaders to reauthorize funding.

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Information from: The Advocate, http://theadvocate.com