Free Clinic of Southwest Washington awarded grant

Bagley Downs — The Free Clinic of Southwest Washington received a $2,500 grant from Columbia Credit Union. The grant is aimed at helping to cover the rising costs of medication for low-income residents. The Free Clinic was established in Clark County in 1990 with the goal of providing basic health care, dental and speciality services to the uninsured. In 2015, more than 6,690 patients visited the clinic for medical care, and the dispensary filled 5,194 prescriptions. All of these services are provided at no cost to the patient. The clinic relies heavily on grants to provide care to the community. “Without access to free medications at the Free Clinic, patients may end up in a hospital emergency room when their conditions become acute, and where services are extremely expensive,” Barbe West, executive director of the clinic, said in a press release.