$200,823: Ferndale clinic to get new doctor, dentist. - Bellingham Business Journal

As the economy hits tough times, unemployment spikes and hundreds of thousands of people become uninsured over night.

Understanding this fact, the Obama administration has made $338 million available for the more than 1,500 community health centers across the nation that act as a foundation for low-income and uninsured access to basic medical and dental care. The money was made available through a formula based on how many uninsured patients the centers see a year.

As part of this money, Bellingham's Interfaith Community Health Center received slightly more than $200,000 to meet increased demand. The center will use this money to expedite the addition of one doctor and one dentist at its Ferndale clinic.

'We were planning on adding an additional dentist and an additional medical provider there in July 2009, and the federal stimulus funds certainly allow us to do that with greater confidence that we can keep the ship afloat,' said Desmond Skubi, executive director for the Interfaith Community Health Center, which has clinics in Bellingham, Ferndale and Point Roberts. 'That will significantly expand our capacity for services out there.'

Skubi said visits to their clinics are up 15 percent over last year, but he attributes much of this growth to the recently opened Ferndale clinic.

However, the number of uninsured patients is also going up.

'As people lose jobs, they tend to lose health insurance as well, and we're there to serve people regardless of their ability to pay. So again we are seeing a significantly increased number of uninsured people compared to a year ago,' Skubi said.

Skubi said while he is very grateful for the stimulus money, it is counterbalancing deep cuts from the state budget.

'We are still projecting a loss to the organization of $250,000 this year,' Skubi said.

Skubi said he is urging his care providers to see x6 to 17 patients a day to meet increased demand, but also to bring his organization out of a slow-down caused by a transition to digital medical records.

'Productivity is the key to keeping services available, but also to keeping ourselves afloat,' he said.