Alexandria, VA, April 15, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC) has distributed 25 grants made available through the Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s (CDP) COVID-19 Response Fund. In response to the current pandemic, the Fund was launched to support preparedness, containment, response and recovery activities for those most affected and for the responders.
Through this Fund, CDP granted $200,000 to the NAFC to support the expansion of telehealth, provide testing and equipment, expand access to medication and provide operational and technical assistance to our member organizations in the most vulnerable locations. Grants have been distributed to Free and Charitable Clinics and Pharmacies located throughout the U.S. and include locations that have been dealing with some of the highest coronavirus prevalence rates, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Michigan, California, Florida and Washington.
“The NAFC is thrilled that the Center for Disaster Philanthropy recognizes the important work Free and Charitable Clinics and Pharmacies are doing in communities throughout the country to help our 2 million uninsured and medically underserved patients during this pandemic,” says Nicole Lamoureux, NAFC President and CEO. “These funds will help clinics continue to provide needed health care to their patients while complying with social distancing measures and stay-at-home orders to help keep clinic staff, volunteers and patients safe and healthy while also keeping patients from having to turn to emergency rooms for care.”
The following organizations have been awarded grants:
- RotaCare Bay Area, Inc., Milpitas, CA
- Symba Center, Apple Valley, CA
- Grace Medical Home, Orlando, FL
- Georgia Charitable Care Network Inc., Atlanta, GA
- ICNA Relief Shifa Clinic, Duluth, GA
- CommunityHealth, Chicago, IL
- Luke's House: A Clinic for Healing and Hope, New Orleans, LA
- The Health Hut, Ruston, LA
- Martin Luther King Health Center dba MLK Health Center & Pharmacy, Shreveport, LA
- Volunteers in Medicine Berkshires, Great Barrington, MA
- MetroWest Free Medical Program, Sudbury, MA
- C-ASIST Free Health Clinic, Dearborn, MI
- Social Welfare Board, St. Joseph, MO
- Shelter Health Services, Charlotte, NC
- Geneseo Parish Outreach Center, Inc., Geneseo, NY
- Bergen Volunteer Medical Initiative, Hackensack, NJ
- Healthcare 2000 Community Clinic Inc. dba Viola Startzman Clinic, Wooster, OH
- Community Medical Clinic of Kershaw County, Camden, SC
- Christ Clinic, Katy, TX
- Arlington Free Clinic, Arlington, VA
- Bradley Free Clinic, Roanoke, VA
- Grace Clinic, Kennewick, WA
- Yakima Union Gospel Mission Medical Care Center, Yakima, WA
- HealthNet of Rock County, Inc., Janesville, WI
- West Virginia Health Right, Inc., Charleston, WV
“The work of NAFC and its member clinics is vital to effectively increasing access to quality medical care at this crucial time” said Sally Ray, director of strategic initiatives at the Center for Disaster Philanthropy. “CDP is proud to be a partner in this support of vulnerable communities.”
Two million people receive access to health care through America’s 1,400 Free and Charitable Clinics and Pharmacies each year. These organizations operate with little to no government funding and instead rely on the support of donors, partners and 207,000 volunteers, including 106,000 medical volunteers. For more information on how the NAFC and Free & Charitable Clinics and Pharmacies are addressing the coronavirus pandemic, please visit https://www.nafcclinics.org/Coronavirus.
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About the National Association of Free & Charitable Clinics
The National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC) is the only nonprofit 501c(3) organization whose mission is solely focused on the issues and needs of the medically underserved throughout the nation and the more than 1,400 Free and Charitable Clinics and Pharmacies that serve them. The NAFC has earned the Platinum Seal of Transparency from GuideStar. Founded in 2001 and headquartered near Washington, D.C., the NAFC is working to ensure that the medically underserved have access to affordable quality health care and strives to be a national voice promoting quality health care for all. For more information about the NAFC, please visit www.nafcclinics.org. Follow the NAFC on Twitter at @NAFClinics and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NAFCClinics.
About the Center for Disaster Philanthropy (CDP)
The Center for Disaster Philanthropy’s mission is to transform disaster giving by providing timely and thoughtful strategies to increase donors’ impact during domestic and international disasters. In the face of intensifying natural disasters and worsening humanitarian crises, CDP also works to raise awareness of the urgent need to support the full life cycle of disasters, from mitigation and preparedness to long-term recovery and resilience, particularly among vulnerable populations. For more information, visit: http://disasterphilanthropy.org, call (202) 464-2018 or tweet us @funds4disaster.
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