More than $14 million was awarded to 45 school-based health centers across the country, allowing the number of children served to increase by nearly 50%, announced Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, on Thursday.

A full list of grantees is available at http://1.usa.gov/udWWUw.

Clinics receiving the awards, made possible by the Affordable Care Act, are already providing much-needed healthcare services to 112,000 children. The infusion of new money will enable them to expand their capacity and modernize their facilities, which will allow them to treat an estimated additional 53,000 children in 29 states.

"The Affordable Care Act will help ensure our children get the high-quality healthcare they need and deserve," Sebelius said in a news release.

School-based health centers enable children with acute or chronic illnesses to attend school, and improve the overall health and wellness of all children through health screenings, health promotion and disease prevention activities.

Typically, a school-based clinic provides a combination of primary care, mental health care, substance abuse counseling, case management, dental health, nutrition education, health education and health promotion activities.

"These grants will enable school-based health centers to establish new sites or upgrade their current facilities, which will increase their ability to provide preventive and primary healthcare services, and help children improve their health and remain healthy," said Mary K. Wakefield, RN, PhD, administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration.

The Affordable Care Act provides $200 million in funding from 2010-2013 for the School-Based Health Center Capital Program, overseen by HRSA, to address significant and pressing capital needs and to improve delivery and support expansion of services at school-based health centers.

The grants are the second in the series of awards that will be made available to school-based health centers.