WORTHINGTON — Hilltown Community Health Centers — the only provider of medical, oral health, eye care, behavioral health and related community services to residents in roughly 100 ZIP codes in the hilltowns of western Massachusetts — is suddenly facing a financial crisis.
“We cover the western hilltowns in Hampden County and all of Hampshire County to Belchertown, and we are in trouble,” HCHC Executive Director Eliza Lake said.
The problem, she said, has arisen from the pressures of addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, along with a pronounced drop in demand for services.
Hilltown Community Health Centers receive funding through state and federal grants, but most of their revenue comes from patient visits.
With regular patient visits down drastically, health centers are struggling.
“This is having a tremendous impact on us, as that is about a 50 to 70 percent decrease in our revenue,” Lake said.
According to the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers, community health centers across the state are in immediate financial peril as they transition to rapidly respond to the need for screening and testing of COVID-19 patients, while also continuing to address the urgent, non-coronavirus needs of the vulnerable patients they serve.
With locations in Huntington, Worthington and a satellite center in Amherst, Lake said, HCHC is working hard to provide medical services under the incredibly strained conditions caused by the pandemic.
In an effort to protect the health and safety of both patients and providers, HCHC temporarily scaled back some of its services, closing its dental and eye care departments to all but emergency cases.
“That does help with staffing, but it comes at a tremendous cost,” Lake said. “We are facing a real dire financial problem here.”
As HCHC grapples with staffing challenges, Lake said the group is moving toward offering care over the phone, some of which can be done by providers who are now staying at home due to their own vulnerabilities to the virus.
Hilltown Community Health Centers has eight providers in total.
“All providers are working based on their level of risk,” Lake said. “Some are providing tele-health, and urgent care related to chronic conditions and patients with respiratory illness.”
To help mitigate the challenges, Lake said they have been in contact with legislators for assistance.
“We play a critical role as we are the only provider in the hilltowns,” she said. “As a community health center, we are also a safety net for the state.”
Lake said community health centers are required to serve everyone regardless of their ability to pay, and that they take all forms of insurance and also care for the uninsured.
“I know the federal and state government is looking at supporting the health care system, and it is important that community health centers have a very loud voice in that conversation,” she said.
The Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers says that “immediate and significant relief is the only solution for ensuring the short- and long-term viability of Massachusetts community health centers.”
Capital Link, a national nonprofit that assists health centers with capital and finance needs, reports that over the next 12 weeks alone, revenue declines atcommunity health centers will result in income losses of between $109 million and $152 million statewide.
A welcome donation of masks and gloves to the HCHC from an organization called Direct Relief arrived on March 9.
“This is extremely helpful, but the overall picture is still very challenging,” she said Thursday. “We need more gowns, and this morning I learned that we are having trouble getting cleaning supplies.”
HCHC Community Health staff member are still working hard, calling patients, making sure their needs are getting met, and that they are getting the food and medications that they need.
“They are doing a phenomenal job,” Lake said. “Patients have been reporting that they are very pleased with their care, and that makes me feel very good.”
Lake said HCHC community programs are still very active in addressing issues of domestic violence, which she reports are now on the increase, as well as food insecurity.
“We are also a Salvation Army site,” she said.
Like other medical practices, the HCHC is asking patients to call before coming in to one of their locations so that patients can be triaged over the phone and providers can assess the best way to care for them.