Family Health Center of Marshfield, Inc. receives $3 million grant

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – The Family Health Center of Marshfield, Inc. (FHCM) has announced a significant boost in funding in the form of a state grant, which will be used to build a Family Health Center in Wisconsin Rapids, designed to improve access to healthcare services for the community.
FCHM Chief Executive Officer Greg Nycz said there is a lack of proper healthcare in the Wisconsin Rapids community.
“We know that there are a whole lot of people in the greater Wisconsin Rapids area who really need access to dental care and addiction treatment. And we know that because many of them are traveling to our Neillsville Dental Clinic and our Marshfield Dental Clinic to get dental care. One year, we figured out that there were 1,600 people [from Wisconsin Rapids treated at other centers]. One thousand went to Marshfield and 600 went to Neillsville. We figured that was like 150,000 miles of travel.”
Nycz emphasized the role of legislators in addressing local issues like gaps in healthcare coverage.
“Our representatives, when they’re aware of a problem in their district, they can be helpful with grabbing some funds to help make that project come true. That’s the whole idea behind it, and that congressionally-directed spending is best made by people closest to the problems, which are the representatives.”

The project gained strong bipartisan support when the FHCM board proposed it, and was championed by both Senator Tammy Baldwin and Congressman Derrick Van Orden. The representatives each went through a different process to secure the funds.
“Senator Baldwin was very willing to support this in what they call the Health Committee, and Congressman Van Orden was willing to support it through the USDA Department of Agriculture.
Those USDA funds were earmarked for rural development, a project which the Health Center qualifies.”
The Wisconsin Rapids Center will function as a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), a specific type of Community Health Center (CHC) that meets strict federal criteria. This qualification grants benefits like cost-based Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement and access to 340B drug discounts. CHC is a broader term for any community-based clinic focused on serving underserved populations with affordable care, which may or may not be an FQHC.
Nycz said the land for the center, which will be located at 220 24th St. S, Wisconsin Rapids, is to be donated by Executive Director of The Legacy Foundation of Central Wisconsin Mike Bovee as part of a regional redevelopment effort. The center is planned to include a 24,000 sq. ft. facility with dedicated spaces for dental, behavioral health and primary care. The center is expected to break ground in fall 2026, pending USDA approval.
Beyond the physical structure, the Wisconsin Rapids Center also plans to utilize modern technology. Nycz said the center will integrate telehealth services, which will enable broader patient reach, especially for those in rural or underserved locales or those unable to travel.
The proposed center is an expansion of local healthcare, but is also poised to create new jobs.
“[The center] will also have a community development aspect, because we’re going to be hiring a good number of people who will work there, and that’ll help stimulate the ongoing growth opportunities for the Rapids community,” Nycz said.
The Family Health Center of Marshfield, Inc., in collaboration with Senator Tammy Baldwin and Congressman Derrick Van Orden, The Legacy Foundation of Central Wisconsin and the Aspirus Riverside Foundation, hopes to provide the Wisconsin Rapids community with much-needed, accessible healthcare with a local Family Health Center. Nycz said with local and state support, FHCM is raring to go.