Office of Primary Care and Rural Health

Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) Partnerships 
Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC), Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) & National Health Service Corps (NHSC)

Who Are Safety Net Providers?

From the Institute of Medicine web site:

Safety net providers are providers that deliver a significant level of health care to uninsured, Medicaid, and other vulnerable patients. In its report, the committee focuses on "core safety net providers." These providers have two distinguishing characteristics: 

1. Either by legal mandate or explicitly adopted mission, they offer care to patients regardless of their ability to pay for those services; and

2. A substantial share of their patient mix are uninsured, Medicaid, and other vulnerable patients. 

Core safety net providers typically include public hospitals, community health centers, and local health departments, as well as special service providers such as AIDS and school-based clinics. In some communities, teaching and community hospitals, private physicians, and ambulatory care sites fill the role of core safety net providers.

Institute of Medicine Report Summary America’s Health Care Safety Net: Intact but Endangered  (June 2000)