Latest news with #RemoteAreaMedical
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Free healthcare clinic coming to Paris
PARIS — In many parts of the United States, for millions of Americans, access to basic healthcare is a challenge at best and an impossibility at worst. Due to geographic, economic, or cultural barriers, much of the U.S. population is uninsured or underinsured. Remote Area Medical (RAM) is stepping in to address this issue by offering a free, comprehensive healthcare clinic at Paris High School located at 14040 East 1200th Road, Paris, on June 28-29. This clinic will provide dental, vision, and medical care to those who might otherwise go without these essential services. The clinic is in collaboration with Longview Capital Corporation and the Longview Foundation. RAM Clinics are a lifeline for underserved communities, offering free healthcare services that include general medical exams, dental cleanings, extractions, eye exams, and prescription glasses made on-site. By bringing healthcare directly to those in need, RAM removes the barriers of cost and distance that often prevent people from seeking care. The upcoming clinic in Paris is open to anyone in need, with no insurance and no ID required. RAM encourages anyone who could benefit from these services to attend and receive the care they deserve. The parking lot will open no later than 11:59 p.m. (Midnight) Friday night, June 27. and remain open for the duration of the clinic. Once in the parking lot, additional information regarding clinic-opening processes and next steps will be provided. Clinic doors open at 6 a.m., services are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Saturday's clinic operations will be an abbreviated day, patients are advised to arrive as early as possible. Due to time constraints, patients should be prepared to choose between dental and vision services. In some situations outside of RAM's control, such as inclement weather, volunteer cancellations or other circumstances, the parking lot may open earlier or a smaller number of patients may be served. RAM encourages everyone who would like services, especially dental services, to arrive as early as possible. Clinic closing time may vary based on each service area's daily capacity. For more information on the upcoming RAM Clinic, including how to volunteer or donate, visit or call 865-579-1530.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'Largest medical event in Anderson County's history' coming to Oak Ridge this weekend
Remote Area Medical (RAM) and Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge are partnering again to bring a free medical, vision and dental clinic to the Oak Ridge Recreation Center, 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike. People who need the free services will begin arriving in the parking lots before 11:59 p.m. Friday or earlier to be among the first in line for the free services. Billy Edmonds, Free Medical Clinic executive director, has said it'll be the "largest medical event in Anderson County's history." It is expected to surpass free RAM clinics held in past years at First Baptist Church in Clinton and the one held in Oak Ridge on Feb. 18-19, 2023. The clinic will offer medical, dental and vision services, a way to get same-day eyeglasses, and an on-site pharmacy, Edmonds said in talking about this weekend's clinic in a previous news story. He urged people to take their children and get their vaccines, as well as their sports physicals, which he said can be expensive. All RAM services are free to anyone and and no ID is required. The parking lot will open no later than 11:59 p.m. Friday and remain open for the duration of the clinic. Once in the parking lot, patients will receive additional information regarding clinic processes and next steps, according to RAM information. Clinic doors open at 6 a.m., and services are offered on a first-come, first-served basis until capacity is reached. Sunday's clinic will be open a shorter day - perhaps closing by 2 p.m. or earlier, according to a news release from the city of Oak Ridge - so patients are advised to arrive as early as possible. Due to time constraints, patients should be prepared to choose between dental and vision services, but all patients will be offered general medical care. The RAM clinic will offer free dental cleanings, dental fillings, dental extractions, dental X-Rays, eye exams, eye health exams, eyeglass prescriptions, eyeglasses made on-site, women's health exams and general medical exams, according to a news release from the organization formed by the late Stan Brock, who was known by baby boomers for his appearances on Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom" television show. As Remote Area Medical explains in its information, basic healthcare is a challenge - or an impossibility - for millions of Americans. Why? "Due to geographic, economic, or cultural barriers, much of the U.S. population is uninsured or underinsured," the RAM information stated. RAM is seeking volunteer medical, dental and vision professionals and general support staff for the clinic. General support volunteers are also needed on May 2 to help the clinic set up and on May 4 to take it down. Overnight parking volunteers to greet patients are also needed, and interpreters can volunteer to aid patients through the process, either in the parking lot or during clinic operations. Individuals do not need to work in the medical field to volunteer as general support, the release stated. Those who would like to volunteer can email volunteers@ and mention you'd like to volunteer in Oak Ridge this weekend. Remote Area Medical (RAM) is a leading nonprofit organizationdedicated to providing free, high-quality healthcare services to those who face barriers to its pop-up clinics, RAM delivers essential medical, dental, and vision care to underserved anduninsured communities across the country. Since its inception in 1985, RAM has been committed toreducing pain and suffering by offering compassionate, no-cost care to those in need. Over the years,RAM has served more than 940,000 individuals through over 1,400 clinics, making a significant impacton public health and community well-being. The Oak Ridger's News Editor Donna Smith covers Oak Ridge area news. Email her at dsmith@ and follow her on Twitter@ridgernewsed. Support The Oak Ridger by subscribing. Offers available at This article originally appeared on Oakridger: Get free medical, dental, vision care in Oak Ridge this weekend
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
The most likely Medicaid cuts would hit rural areas the hardest
Patients have their blood pressure checked and other vitals taken at an intake triage at a Remote Area Medical (RAM) mobile dental and medical clinic in Grundy, Va. Potential cuts to Medicaid would hit working-age adults who live in small towns and rural areas especially hard. () Working-age adults who live in small towns and rural areas are more likely to be covered by Medicaid than their counterparts in cities, creating a dilemma for Republicans looking to make deep cuts to the health care program. About 72 million people — nearly 1 in 5 people in the United States — are enrolled in Medicaid, which provides health care coverage to low-income and disabled people and is jointly funded by the federal government and the states. Black, Hispanic and Native people are disproportionately represented on the rolls, and more than half of Medicaid recipients are people of color. Nationwide, 18.3% of adults who are between the ages of 19 and 64 and live in small towns and rural areas are enrolled, compared with 16.3% in metro areas, according to a recent analysis by the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. In 15 states, at least a fifth of working-age adults in small towns and rural areas are covered by Medicaid, and in two of those states — Arizona and New York — more than a third are. Eight of the 15 states voted for President Donald Trump. Health insurance for millions could vanish as states put Medicaid expansion on chopping block Twenty-six Republicans in the U.S. House represent districts where Medicaid covers more than 30% of the population, according to a recent analysis by The New York Times. Many of those districts have significant rural populations, including House Speaker Mike Johnson's 4th Congressional District in Louisiana. Republican U.S. Rep. David Valadao of California, whose Central Valley district is more than two-thirds Hispanic and where 68% of the residents are enrolled in Medicaid, has spoken out against potential cuts. 'I've heard from countless constituents who tell me the only way they can afford health care is through programs like Medicaid, and I will not support a final reconciliation bill that risks leaving them behind,' Valadao said to House members in a recent floor speech. U.S. House Republicans are trying to reduce the federal budget by $2 trillion as they seek $4.5 trillion in tax cuts. GOP leaders have directed the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid and Medicare, to find $880 billion in savings. Trump has ruled out cuts to Medicare, which covers older adults. That leaves Medicaid as the only other program big enough to provide the needed savings — and the Medicaid recipients most likely to be in the crosshairs are working-age adults. But targeting that population would have a disproportionate impact on small towns and rural areas, which are reliably Republican. Furthermore, hospitals and other health care providers in rural communities are heavily reliant on Medicaid. Many rural hospitals are struggling, and nearly 200 have closed or significantly scaled back their services in the past two decades. Before the Affordable Care Act was enacted in 2010, there were far fewer working-age adults on the Medicaid rolls: The program mostly covered children and their caregivers, people with disabilities and pregnant women. But under the ACA, states are allowed to expand Medicaid to cover adults making up to 138% of the federal poverty level — about $21,000 a year for a single person. As an inducement to expand, the federal government covers 90% of the costs — a greater share than what the feds pay for the traditional Medicaid population. States will not be able to cover those shortfalls. – Jennifer Driver, senior director of reproductive rights at the State Innovation Exchange Last year, there were about 21.3 million people who received coverage through Medicaid expansion. One GOP cost-saving idea is to reduce the federal match for that population to what the feds give states for the traditional Medicaid population, which ranges from 50% for the wealthiest states to 77% for the poorest ones. That would reduce federal spending by $626 billion over a 10-year period, according to a recent analysis by KFF, a health research group. Nine states — Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Utah and Virginia — have so-called trigger laws that would automatically end Medicaid expansion if the feds reduce their share. Three other states — Idaho, Iowa and New Mexico — would require other cost-saving steps. 'States will not be able to cover those shortfalls,' said Jennifer Driver, senior director of reproductive rights at the State Innovation Exchange, a left-leaning nonprofit that advocates on state legislative issues. 'It's not cutting costs. It is putting people in real danger.' Reducing federal dollars for Medicaid expansion could cut millions from the rolls Studies have shown that Medicaid expansion has improved health care for a range of issues, including family planning, HIV care and prevention, and postpartum health care. Another idea is to require able-bodied Medicaid recipients to work. That would affect an average of 15 million enrollees each year, and 1.5 million would lose eligibility for federal funding, resulting in federal savings of about $109 billion over 10 years. In heavily rural North Carolina, which has a trigger law, there are about 3 million people on Medicaid, and 640,000 of them are eligible under the state's expansion program. About 231,000 of the expansion enrollees live in rural counties. Black residents make up about 36% of new enrollees under the state's eligibility expansion, but only about 22% of the state's population. Brandy Harrell, chief of staff at the Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation, an advocacy group based in Cary, North Carolina, that focuses on rural issues, said the proposed Medicaid cuts would 'deepen the existing disparities' between white people and Black people and urban and rural residents. 'It would have a profound effect on working families by reducing access to essential health care, increasing financial strain and jeopardizing children's health,' Harrell said. 'Cuts could lead to more medical debt, and also poorer health outcomes for our state.' Two of the North Carolina lawmakers with about 30% of their constituents on Medicaid, U.S. Reps. Virginia Foxx and Greg Murphy, represent heavily rural districts in western and coastal North Carolina, respectively. For Indian Country, federal cuts decimate core tribal programs Foxx has supported GOP budget priorities in social media posts. Murphy, a physician and co-chair of the GOP Doctors Caucus in the House, has focused his statements on taking care of what he says is abuse and fraud in the Medicaid system. But North Carolina Democratic Gov. Josh Stein last week sent a letter to U.S. House and Senate leaders of both parties, saying the state's rural communities disproportionately rely on Medicaid and that cuts would upend an already fragile landscape for rural hospitals in the state. 'The damage to North Carolina's health care system, particularly rural hospitals and providers, would be devastating, not to mention to people who can no longer afford to access health care,' Stein wrote. In Nebraska, 27% of residents live in rural areas, and state lawmakers are already scrambling to make up for reduced federal Medicaid funding. Dr. Alex Dworak, a family medicine physician who works at an Omaha health clinic that serves low-income and uninsured people, said a dearth of health care options in rural Nebraska already hurts residents. He has one patient who drives up to three hours from his rural community to the clinic. 'It wouldn't be just bad for marginalized communities, but it would be worse for marginalized communities — because things were already worse for them,' Dworak said of proposed Medicaid cuts. 'It will be an utter disaster.' Stateline reporter Nada Hassanein and Stateline's Barbara Barrett contributed to this report. Scott S. Greenberger can be reached at sgreenberger@ SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Prep moving along for RAM clinic
Mar. 8—SAYBROOK — Preparations for the Remote Area Medical event, scheduled for March 22-23 at Lakeside Junior High School, are moving along well, said Ashtabula County Commissioner J.P. Ducro, who serves on the board that brings the clinic to Ashtabula County. RAM, a Tennessee-based organization, coordinates free clinics in underserved areas all over the United Staes. They have been working with county leaders for the event in Ashtabula since the late 2010s. kAm"(6 2C6 C62==J :? AC6EEJ 8@@5 D92A6[" sF4C@ D2:5]k^Am kAm%96 4=:?:4 H:== 36 D=:89E=J D>2==6C E9:D J62C 3642FD6 @7 E96 >@G6 E@ {22E H:== 36 E96 D2>6 2D E96 =2DE D6G6C2= J62CD[ H:E9 A6@A=6 D66? @? 2 7:CDE 4@>6[ 7:CDE D6CG65 32D:D[ sF4C@ D2:5]k^Am kAmw6 D2:5 A6@A=6 2C6 E@ 6?E6C E96 $2?3@C? #@25 6?EC2?46 E@ E96 4@>A=6I[ 2?5 H:== 36 5:C64E65 E@ E96 A2C:5?:89E |2C49 aa]k^Am kAm!6@A=6 H:== 36 23=6 E@ DE2J :? E96:C 42CD[ 2?5 G@=F?E66CD H:== 368:? 2DD:DE:?8 H:E9 AC6\C68:DEC2E:@? :? A6@A=6'D 42CD[ AC@323=J 36EH66? b 2?5 c 2]>] (96? :E :D 4=@D6 E@ D6CG:46 E:>6[ A6@A=6 H:== 36 >6DD2865 3J E6IE @C 6>2:=]k^Am kAmsF4C@ D2:5 :7 2 A9@?6 @C 4@>AFE6C :D ?@E 2? @AE:@?[ A6@A=6 H:== 36 :?7@C>65 3J DE277 :? E96 A2C:?8 7@C 56?E2= 42C6[ J@F D9@F=5 4@>6 62C=:6C[" sF4C@ D2:5]k^Am kAm~? E96 @E96C D:56 @7 E96 6BF2E:@?[ E96C6 H:== 36 >@C6 G:D:@? AC@G:56CD G@=F?E66C:?8 E9:D J62C]k^Am
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Remote Area Medical coming to Ashtabula Co. for free clinic
(WJET/WFXP)– Another free healthcare clinic is on its way to the region, this time taking place in Ashtabula County near the end of March. Remote Area Medical (RAM) announced this week they're hosting a healthcare clinic for residents, regardless of their insurance standing, free of charge offering dental, vision and medical care to anyone in need. Morgan Freeman coming to Chautauqua Institute this summer RAM will be at Lakeside Junior High School, located at 6620 Sanborn Road, on March 22 and 23 with doors opening at 6 a.m. each day and patients being seen on a first come, first served basis. No ID or insurance is required for the event with general medical exams, dental cleanings, extractions, eye exams, and prescription glasses made on-site available throughout the weekend. There will also be free Narcan training take-home HTV kits, local healthcare options, nutrition, and more. Jersey Mike's Subs Month of Giving returning this March RAM is encouraging anyone who may need or want the free services to attend and to show up as early as possible, especially if they're looking for dental services. Attendees should also be prepared to choose between dental and vision services due to time constraints. The ending time also may vary based on how much each service can be provided. For more information on the event, check out their Facebook page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
