BUTLER COUNTY, Pa. — This weekend, Butler Intermediate High School looks more like a mini hospital. The space transformed into a clinic filled with patients, doctors and volunteers.
Gena Jones is from Tarentum. She showed up for dental work, needing cleaning and fillings.
“You know I’m older, so, it’s very easy to get some complications if your teeth is not cleaned,” Jones said.
A non-profit called Remote Area Medical is teaming up with Concordia Lutheran Ministries to bring the clinic to Butler.
This free health clinic started in 1985 in Tennessee, but it’s the first time it’s come to this region.
“Yeah, it helps... people like us. We don’t have insurance, so it’s very helpful,” Jones said.
“This is for anybody, first come, first serve. No insurance required, no ID required. All they have to do is show up,” said Clinic Coordinator Stephen Blackstock.
At the clinic, doctors from all over the country give free vision, medical and dental services to whoever needs care.
Doctor Daniel Sasson, a retired dentist from Brooklyn, is one of the medical professionals working at the clinic.
“This is fabulous. They’ve got great food, and they’ve got lots of space and you keep patients socially distant,” Sasson said.
Sasson is doing the work to honor his late father, an optometrist who believed everyone deserved healthcare.
“It feels great to be able to help. It feels bad that they need so much help because, in America, we should have a better safety net, and it’s not just here in Butler and in Tennessee — it’s across the nation,” Sasson said.
If you missed Saturday’s session, the Remote Area Medical clinic will be back Sunday starting at 6 am. It will run for a half day.
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