Caring for the Uninsured: Free Clinic's, Health Care's Safety Net
Posted on 02. Nov, 2009 by admin in Community Focus
by Shanita Bigelow
CommunityHealth patient, Maria Gomez, is shown being examined by a professional volunteer. CommunityHealth provides free programs and services from dermatology to cardiology to eligible applicants. Photo courtesy of CommunityHealth.
“I’m encouraged that the need for health care reform has come to the forefront,” said Judith Haasis, Executive Director of CommunityHealth, a Chicago free clinic serving the poor and uninsured. “There’s a renewed appreciation and understanding for reform. That is progress”
Illinois’ uninsured number more than 1.8 million, according to CommunityHealth, and 1.3 million reside in Chicago.
“We are that piece of the health care safety net that catches [this] vulnerable [population],” Haasis said. CommunityHealth is one of the largest free clinics in Illinois and one of the largest in the nation with 14 exam rooms and over 600 dedicated volunteers, ranging from physicians, medical students and nurses to translators, lab and pharmacy technicians, according to Haasis.
Primarily serving the working class, CommunityHealth provides the “respectful environment all deserve,” Haasis stated. The patients of CommunityHealth, mostly minorities (65% Latino, 10% African American) and mostly women (60%), receive compassionate and personalized care free of charge. Everything from lab work to prescriptions are available at no cost.
CommunityHealth, like many free clinics across the nation is not the stereotypical free clinic, denoted by small facilities and long, snaking lines, but welcomes the community and assesses their needs through a streamlined application process,assuring the best possible care from their first visit, according to Haasis. As Congress continues to wrestle with reform legislation, the public waits, the estimated 47 million of uninsured Americans wait for legislation that attends to their needs.
The most recent bill, approved by the Senate Finance Committee last week, “a product of vigorous debate and difficult negotiations…is not perfect [but]…goes a long towards offering security to those who have insurance, and affordable options for those who don’t,” President Barack Obama said in a released statement.
“Free clinics…believe that there will be a need for [them] for many years forward because [even] with meaningful long term reform for all there will be those that fall through the cracks,” Haasis contends.
