Financially troubled C.W. Williams health center reduces hours, patients seen
By Karen Garloch, The Charlotte Observer | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
A notice posted on the door at the Wilkinson location says it remains open three days a week -- Monday, Wednesday and Thursday -- instead of the usual five, that it has one staff physician instead of three in the past and that only 25 adult patients with appointments can be seen in a day.
"All services are planned to be restored or continued once the health center operations are restructured," the notice says. "To restructure operations and address the financial challenges before us, these measures are necessary at this time."
Since the beginning of the year, C.W. Williams has lost about half its staff through layoffs or attrition and has sometimes delayed paying employees and vendors for weeks. Patients have complained about poor service and being unable to refill essential prescriptions.
In June, Mecklenburg County Manager
For fiscal year 2015, commissioners discontinued a grant for care of the homeless to C.W. Williams. Instead they gave the grant, for
Many patients who have been turned away by C.W. Williams are showing up at Charlotte Community Health Clinic, Executive Director
She said about 40 people who had been established patients at C.W. Williams have come for care, and some have prescriptions for insulin and blood-pressure medicines that they couldn't get refilled at C.W. Williams. These patients are in addition to about 150 homeless patients being cared for under the county grant.
C.W. Williams is the only federally qualified health center in Mecklenburg and one of 32 in the state. Based on the latest federal data, the health center got an 18 percent increase in federal funding from 2011 to 2013, but treated 22 percent fewer patients in the same period.
C.W. Williams' federal funding increased from
Despite the center's financial struggles, it continues to get federal funding. Just last week,
That included
All the changes at C.W. Williams have left patients confused.
"My aunt was never notified ... and she has been unable to reach her case worker despite numerous calls," Altman said. "There was a man sleeping in front of the door waiting for the center to open the following day, so I don't think he was notified either."
___
(c)2014 The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)
Visit The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.) at www.charlotteobserver.com
Distributed by MCT Information Services
Wordcount: | 706 |
Bloomfield’s insurer says lawsuits against city manager have not hurt city
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News