What is a Free Clinic?
Free clinics are volunteer-based, safety net health care organizations that provide a range of medical, dental, pharmacy, and/or behavioral health services to economically disadvantaged individuals who are predominately uninsured.

Free clinics are 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations, or operate as a program component or affiliate of a 501(c)(3) organization. Entities that otherwise meet the above definition, but charge a nominal fee to patients, may still be considered free clinics provided essential services are delivered regardless of the patient's ability to pay.

Why Does VAFC Exist?
Every industry or group of organizations with similar interests does well to have an association to represent and promote them.  That is what VAFC does for Virginia’s Free Clinics.  The mission of the VAFC is to support, strengthen, and advocate for Free Clinics to deliver quality health care to Virginia’s low-income, uninsured and underinsured residents. Virginia has the third-largest number of Free Clinics of any state in the country, behind North Carolina and Georgia.

Free Clinics Impact the Community in Many Ways

Medical Care
In 2010, Free Clinics provided 169,288 general medical, visits worth $16.5 million, and 61,016 specialty medical visits worth $14.8 million.

Prescription Medications
In 2010, Free Clinics provided 711,542 prescription medications worth $68.6 million to their patients. 

Dental Care
Twenty-six Virginia Free Clinics currently provide dental care. A total of 45,178 dental visits worth $10.8 million were provided in 2010.

Hospital/Lab Support
Hospitals and lab companies contributed nearly $58.6 million of in-kind services to Free Clinic patients in 2010.

Mental Health Counseling
In 2010, 41Free Clinics provided 17,575 counseling visits worth $1.4 million.

Our 61 clinics and over 14,000 volunteers made a big difference in the lives of their patients for medical, dental and mental health care. And we do it efficiently. For every one dollar spent, Free Clinics provided access to $6.00 in heatlhcare services for our patients. This strong ratio is due to Free Clinics’ extraordinary ability to leverage the volunteer and charitable capacity of the health system.

Learn more about volunteer opportunties >

Free Clinics funding comes mostly from the private sector. More than 69% of the funding comes from private sources like The United Way, local businesses, foundations, religious organizations, civic organizations and individuals.