Bureau of Primary Health Care - Free Clinics Medical Malpractice Program

Free Clinics Medical Malpractice Program

Free clinics play a significant role in meeting the health care needs of the uninsured, particularly at a time when private physicians may be less likely to provide free care in their offices.

These clinics are typically small organizations with annual budgets of less than $250,000, making them less able to afford the growing cost of malpractice coverage for those clinicians who might otherwise be willing to donate their time.

The Free Clinics Program serves HRSA’s overall policy aim of expanding treatment capacity for the disadvantaged by assuring health professional volunteers that they will be protected against medical malpractice claims. To date, over 2,800 health care providers have been given federal indemnity through the program.

The community health center is a nonprofit health care agency concerned with health promotion and primary prevention goals for specific populations. Populations may include the homeless, minorities, Medicaid recipients, migrant/seasonal farmworkers, persons infected with HIV/AIDS, the underinsured, and the uninsured. Community health centers are funded by the Bureau of Primary Health Care, U.S. Public Health Service, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, via grant money and are located in designated medically underserved areas. The National Association for Community Health Centers and state associations for community health centers are advocates for the local centers. Community health centers are unique in that they employ community health care specialists (e.g., family practice physicians and advanced practice nurses). They provide accessible primary care preventive health services. Their clients include the individual, family, and community; and they have a partnership relationship with the community.