Our Community's Answer for the Uninsured
When income is limited, even a simple illness may be neglected because of the ability to pay. When jobs are lost, families are often unable to afford the high cost of health insurance.
Doylestown Hospital and its medical staff founded The Free Clinic of Doylestown in October 1994 and the clinic became an independent not-for-profit organization in 1997. Adult dental services were added in 2002 under the guidance and support of the dental professionals in our community. Children's dental services were added in July 2010.
The Free Clinic of Doylestown changed its name to Ann Silverman Community Health Clinic in July 2008 in honor and in memory of devoted board member, Ann Silverman.
The Ann Silverman Community Health Clinic serves low-income uninsured or underinsured adults and children in our community. The clinic has provided over 40,000 patient visits, serving over 10,000 adults and children. Our annual budget is $608,000. The clinic is funded through community donations, an annual golf outing, foundation grants and occasional small government grants. An endowment was established in 2007 to ensure ongoing sustainability of the organization.
There is no cost to the patients and no insurance is accepted. To be eligible, a patient must live within our service area, be uninsured, and their household income must be within 200% of the Federal Poverty Level. Persons with household incomes between 200% and 250% of the Poverty Level are eligible for medical and dental care with cost sharing for testing and medications. Patients are screened thoroughly for eligibility at least annually and must apply for government programs, such as Medicaid, Medicare and CHIP when requested.
Medical appointments are available 5 days and 3 evenings per week in Doylestown. Patients requiring specialist physicians are referred to the volunteer doctor's office for care. All medical services are provided by fully licensed physicians, nurse practitioners, and nurses.
Our dental program was founded in 2002 with the assistance of community dentists. Urgent dental services are provided for adults and children at no cost to the patient. On-site dental exams and x-rays are provided by volunteer dentists and patients are referred to community dentists for the actual treatment. Volunteer hygienists provide dental hygiene in the Doylestown clinic. Over 900 patients have received 4,000+ treatment visits through our community network of 42 volunteer dentists and 8 dental hygienists.
The clinic provides social work services in order to connect individuals in the community with resources to improve their quality of life. Adults and children are enrolled in free or low-cost health insurance, such as CHIP and Medicaid. Assistance is provided to help eligible patients enroll in the free or low-cost medication programs offered by the pharmaceutical companies. Referrals are also made to other community organizations who can help, such as for legal services, domestic violence, drug and alcohol and mental health services.
Click here to read our annual report
|
|