Impact of Health Reform on Free Clinics

Will health insurance reform mean that recent free clinics in these places—plus Houston, New Orleans, and Little Rock—no longer be necessary? The executive director of the Scotland Community Health Clinic in Laurinburg, North Carolina appears to think that the need for free clinics won’t disappear with the President’s signature on health insurance legislation: "The early talk is that there will still be a long term need for free clinics (because) … (e)ven with vouchers, not everyone will be able to purchase medicines, and some will not qualify for Medicaid. I don't see the need for free clinics going away just yet."