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Community
Free Clinic
BLESSINGS
Winter 2010 Moving Forward in 2010 Many exciting things have happened at the Community Free Clinic in 2009! While
the Clinic faced its most challenging year in our 19 year history, we are proud to say that we were able to keep Clinic doors
open to new patients throughout the entire year. Having been faced with the highest number of new patients
in one year since the Clinic opened in 1990 definitely brought a challenge both to the staff and to the Clinic’s operating
budget. Many new patients presented to the Clinic, who for the first time in their working careers, are
medically uninsured for the first time in their lives. These are folks who have been steadily employed
for 20 years or more and have recently become unemployed or their company no longer offers medical health insurance coverage.
Having no where to turn for much needed medical care and prescription medication they find themselves entering the
doors of the Community Free Clinic for the first time. As of the printing of this newsletter the Clinic
has accepted and provided care to over 900 new patients in 2009 alone and will have delivered over 16,000
individual patient visits. To say that we have been financially challenged this year is to make a bold
understatement. I’m sure this brings you to the thought of how the Clinic’s operating budget supported
this increased demand for service. It is because of you, our generous donors, who support our mission.
Our Board of Directors and administrative staff have diligently worked to begin to develop new strategies to financially
support the Clinic’s operating budget. The Community Free Clinic has been granted approval by the
State of Maryland to offer a Charitable Gift Annuity Program which is a win/win both for the Clinic and for the donor.
In addition, the Clinic has established the Dan McDougal Endowment Fund and will work to grow that fund, which will
eventually be able to help support the Clinic’s operating needs on an ongoing basis. While both these
funds are in their early infancy and are currently not providing financial support, they are both established and in operation.
In addition, the Clinic held 10 fundraisers/solicitations this year. In closing, I must give many thanks to the Clinic’s staff, Board of
Directors and volunteers, for without their commitment and dedication we would not be able to serve those who enter our doors.
Best wishes to each of you for a prosperous new year!! Census Bureau Reports Number of U.S. Uninsured Rises to 47 Million -Almost 5 Percent Increase Since 2005-
For the sixth
consecutive year, the number of Americans living without health insurance has risen, according to new U.S. Census Bureau data.
Approximately 2.2 million people were added to the uninsured rolls in 2006 — the largest one-year increase in the number
of uninsured Americans since 2002.Annual Census Bureau estimates
released in August show 47 million people, or 15.8 percent of the U.S. population, were without health insurance during 2006
— a 4.9 percent increase. In 2005, census figures showed that 44.8 million people, or about 15.3 percent of the population,
lacked health insurance coverage. The number of uninsured Americans
has increased 22 percent since 2000, at which time 38.4 million people lacked health insurance.Fewer Americans had employer-based coverage in 2006, the new data show. The percentage of people covered
by employer plans fell from 60.2 percent in 2005 to 59.7 percent in 2006, according to the report, "Income, Poverty and
Health Insurance Coverage in the United States."Families
USA, a national health care consumer advocacy group, said the "epidemic" of uninsured has reached crisis proportions.
The number of uninsured Americans exceeds the cumulative population of 24 states and the District of Columbia. The number of uninsured full-time workers increased from 20.8
million in 2005 to 22 million in 2006, while the number of uninsured part-time workers, 5.6 million, remained the same as
in 2005. Between 2005 and 2006, the number of U.S.-born residents who were uninsured increased from 33 million to 34.4 million. Fortunately in Washington County there is a resource for the
uninsured citizens in our community. The Community Free Clinic is a vital resource for those who are uninsured
and is a facility that most communities cannot offer. To date there are only 1200 free clinics in the nation
and our facility in Washington County is one of the clinics who serve the largest number of patient visits and offers in addition
to primary care medication, laboratory studies, radiology testing, and many specialty clinics. In 2009 the Community Free Clinic was accepted into the National Association of
Free Clinics and continues to maintain a high standard of care for our patients. All services provided
to our patients are free of charge. Patients must be Washington County citizens to qualify for Clinic services. Teen Births in County Falls to 5-year Low Over the past several years Washington County has had one of the highest birth rates
among teen girls in the state, ranking as high as number 3 in the state. In 2007, Washington County statistics
show that 58 out of 1000 births were to teen girls between the ages of 15-19 years old.
I am happy to report that 2008 statistics have recently been reported and Washington County has had a significant drop in teen births and we now are ranked number 5 in the state. The 2008 statistics show that of 1000 births only 47 were among teen girls. This is the lowest number of teen births in the county for the past five years.
The Community Free Clinic has been part of this success. The Clinic has operated a Teen Pregnancy Prevention Clinic over the past three years. We hold this Clinic every Thursday evening at 4 pm and deliver services to as many as 30 teens per month. While we teach an abstinence based program we also provide medical services, contraceptives, STD and HIV testing and prevention. We see many teens returning to the Clinic for ongoing services and we are building relationships with these teens as they continue to come into the Clinic. This year in particular we have tried to focus on parental involvement, which the teens say is an area where communication is difficult. The Clinic staff devotes a great deal of time educating the teens, providing educational material and we work hard to create a comfortable environment for the teens so they will continue to come in.
This program at the Clinic has been made possible through the Washington County
Community Partnership for Children and Families, the Washington County Commissioners and the Community Foundation of Washington
County.
On October 10, 2009 the Community Free Clinic held a “Tribute to Dan” to honor Dr. Dan McDougal for his service and dedication to the Community Free Clinic. Dr. McDougal has served as Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Clinic and also has held the role of Medical Director for the past 7 years. In early 2009, Dr. McDougal was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) and has had a rapid decline in his health since that time. When asked if we could honor him with a dinner he replied, “Only if the proceeds begin an endowment fund for the Clinic.”
Family, friends and colleagues gathered at the Hager Hall Convention and Event Center on October 10 to pay their respect and to honor Dr. McDougal for his many years of dedication and service to the Community Free Clinic. Dr. McDougal’s generosity and humanitarian spirit were the center of the program as many areas of his life and career achievements were recognized throughout the evening.
Prior to Dr. McDougal’s illness he was an avid walker/runner, trekking up to 4 miles a day. As part of the tribute we followed the dinner with the Dan McDougal 5K Fun Run/Walk the following Saturday, October 17 at Williamsport High School. There were 26 participants this year. We plan to hold an annual endowment drive dinner and also a 5K to continue to grow the fund. Watch for upcoming dates for 2010. Through the generosity of Dr. McDougal’s contribution to the Clinic and the community, these two events rose over $45,000 before expenses. A couple of weeks following the dinner an anonymous donor called the Clinic’s Executive Director to ask how much money the Clinic had raised. The following week that donor appeared at the door of the Executive Director with a check in the amount of $47,000 to match what funds had been raised. After expenses, those funds have been utilized to create the Dan McDougal Endowment Fund to support future operations of the Community Free Clinic and we have deposited over $83,000 into the endowment fund…amazing!!! We will continue to accept contributions to the endowment fund but cannot minimize the need for funding for our operational budget. All contributions to the Community Free Clinic are tax deductible.
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