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December 29, 2009

Congressman tours Joplin clinic

Blunt says clinics play pivotal role in health care

By Susan Redden

sredden@joplinglobe.com

Clinics, such as Access Family Care in Joplin, provide answers to some of the health care coverage questions being debated in Congress, U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt said Tuesday.

Blunt toured the Joplin location of the multi-site clinic operation that provides medical and dental services in the region. Fees are charged on a sliding scale based on the patient’s income.

Blunt said that because the operation is a Federally Qualified Health Center, it can hold down costs because physicians working there are not required to have medical liability insurance coverage.

The Republican congressman said medical liability reform needs to be part of the federal health care solution, and that the health care bill passed last week in the Senate “is a huge step in the wrong direction.”

The measure would reduce health care access and cost too much, he said. Taxes to pay for the plan would be imposed immediately, while spending for health care would not start until 2013, he said.

Blunt’s comments came at the end of an hourlong tour of the Joplin clinic. State funds helped cover costs for opening the site. Blunt and U.S. Sen. Christopher “Kit” Bond helped obtain federal allocations for equipment and other costs there, and at clinic sites in Anderson and Cassville. Started as MyClinic in 2004, the Joplin clinic was moved just over a year ago to a former supermarket building at 530 S. Maiden Lane.

“People need to be able to get health care regardless of pre-existing conditions, and it needs to be accessible and convenient, which is why places like this attract people who are more likely to go someplace close to home,” Blunt said.

The Joplin clinic sees about 100 patients a day, and it is planning to expand hours to meet increased needs, said Charles Bentlage, medical director.

“We have appointments scheduled through the end of February,” he said.

Starting Feb. 15, the clinic will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. six days a week. The clinic is working to expand its pediatric and women’s health services. Another conversion under way, Bentlage said, is a shift to all-electronic medical records.

Bentlage led the tour, which included Pedro Pantoja and Francisco Bustillo, both members of Access’ board of directors, and Mayor Gary Shaw.

Debra Davidson, chief operating officer, said about half of those using the clinic have no insurance. About 45 percent have Medicaid coverage, and the remainder use Medicare or private insurance.

“Some people do have insurance, but they come here because their deductibles are so high,” she said.

“Some also stay here after they get insurance because they like our services,” said Don McBride, chief executive officer.

Demand for dental services is high because few private dentists will accept Medicaid as payment or offer income-based fees.

McBride said he sees such clinics as an answer to some of the challenges in health care because they give people without a regular physician a place to go other than the emergency room.

“We need to reduce the number of emergency room visits,” Bentlage said. “It’s too expensive, and it’s not the place to go for primary health care.”



History

The operation was started by a consortium, Ozark Tri-County Health Care, which opened its first clinic in 1999 at Pineville.

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