ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A free health care clinic is coming to the Lehigh Valley this weekend.
The pop-up clinic, at Executive Education Academy Charter School, 555 Union Blvd., Allentown, will be open at 6 a.m. Saturday and Sunday to anyone needing medical, dental or vision services.
- A pop-up health clinic in Allentown will offer free services Saturday and Sunday
- Medical, dental and vision services will be offered
- No identification or prior paperwork is needed
Remote Area Medical, also known as RAM, is a nonprofit that holds free clinics across the country, including this weekend’s event in Allentown.
This will be its third one in Pennsylvania and first in Allentown.
No identification or prior paperwork will be needed.
Hutchins said the parking lot will open at midnight and it expects people will start lining up around then to get a ticket for care.
"These services will be available to any of our patients, so we'll set a capacity for vision and dental and that number is usually based on the number of providers that we have registered for the event and that's done the night before."RAM clinic coordinator Brad Hutchinson
"For our dental services, that will typically be cleanings, fillings and extractions," RAM clinic coordinator Brad Hutchinson said. "And then for medical, we'll have general medicine. What that looks like is your urgent care.
"So it'd be just a basic wellness check and we will also have women's health on site.”
Hutchinson said limited blood work and pap smears also will be available.
"These services will be available to any of our patients, so we'll set a capacity for vision and dental and that number is usually based on the number of providers that we have registered for the event and that's done the night before,” he said.
Importance of access to free care
The U.S. Census Bureau says that in the Allentown community alone, nearly 16,000 people under the age of 65 are uninsured or underinsured, Global Hope InternationalExecutive DirectorMonica Georges said.
Global Hope is a humanitarian aid organization that primarily focuses on helping to provide free health care to people both locally and globally.
"I just hope that everyone really understands the importance of having access to free health care and really makes that something that they desire to strive for and in providing support people, support for people to be able to do that."Global Hope International Executive Director Monica Georges
Georges said she saw a need for free health services in the Lehigh Valley and reached out to RAM.
“We have a good number of people within our community that ... though they might have access to health care, they don't necessarily have access to services where they won't have a bill to have to worry about after receiving that care,” Georges said.
Funding for the free event came from a $25,000 grant from Lehigh County through the COVID-19 federal funding. United Way's fund for racial justice and equity granted $20,000 to the project.
"I just hope that everyone really understands the importance of having access to free health care and really makes that something that they desire to strive for and in providing support people, support for people to be able to do that,” Georges said.
Hutchinson said there is an urgent need for dental providers, so anyone interested should reach out to RAM.
