Welcome to Harbor Health!
Harbor Health Services Inc. is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit public health agency with a mission to help individuals achieve their full potential through access to local, affordable services that promote health. Harbor provides medical, behavioral health, dental, and support services to more than 34,000 patients in Boston, the South Shore, and Cape Cod.
Harbor Health has been a part of the history of community health in the United Stated since 1965. All are welcome at Harbor’s community health centers. We serve everyone regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
Today, our organization operates five community health centers:
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- Geiger Gibson Community Health Center – the first community health center in the U.S. founded in 1965!
Our health centers are Health Center Program grantees under 42 U.S.C. 254b, and a deemed Public Health Service employee under 42 U.S.C. 233(g)-(n).
Our services include a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), a program that allows elders to live in their homes and communities. Our PACE program has two day centers in Brockton and Mattapan and cares for more than 500 participants.
Harbor Health is also home to the Dorchester South/South Boston Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Nutrition Program. Our WIC program provides services at Harbor’s Dorchester locations, as well as at other community health center and mobile locations in Boston. WIC serves more than 3,000 women and their children each year.
Our Accreditation
HRSA Health Center Program
Harbor Health proudly earned the 2024 Health Center Quality Leader Gold Badge, placing our community health centers in the top 10% nationwide for clinical quality measures. Harbor was one of only two community health centers in Massachusetts to receive the Gold Badge. We also received the Addressing Social Risk Factors and Advancing Health IT for Quality Badges.
Patient Centered Medical Home
Harbor Health has been a recognized NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) since 2011. As a PCMH, Harbor Health provides primary care that is:
- Comprehensive and inclusive of physical and behavioral health needs
- Coordinated across the health system
- Patient-centered to meet each patient’s needs and goals
- Monitored for quality and safety
- Based on the latest research and technology
PCMH is a model of primary care that is patient-centered, comprehensive, team-based, coordinated, accessible, and focused on quality and safety. It is a philosophy of healthcare delivery that encourages providers and care teams to meet patients where they are, from the most simple to the most complex conditions. Using a culturally appropriate and team-based approach, patients are treated with respect, dignity, and compassion, and develop strong and trusting relationships with providers and staff.
Age-Friendly Health System - Committed to Care Excellence for Older Adults
Harbor Health’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) program has achieved special recognition as an Age-Friendly Health System — Committed to Care Excellence from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in our ongoing efforts to ensure age-friendly care for all older adults we serve.
National Health Service Corps
Harbor Health is a National Health Service Corps site.
PCMH Prime Certification
Harbor Health received MA Health Policy Commission Patient Centered Medical Home PRIME certification for behavioral health integration in February 2017.
The Community of Community Health Centers
FTCA Designation
Harbor Health is a Federally Qualified Health Center and is a ‘‘deemed” facility under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA). The FTCA provides medical malpractice coverage to all deemed facilities and its staff.
