For-profit healthcare provider Oak Street Health opened two new locations in Dayton this summer. Gina Chia, Regional Vice President of Oak Street Health, says their two new locations in Crown Point and Walnut Hills are providing access to healthcare in places where there’s a lack.
"We try to bring our model of care to as many communities as we can," she says. "We typically look for locations where there’s a density of Medicare-eligible residents, as well as neighborhoods where there may be little to no access to quality healthcare.”
Chia says the clinics largely serve seniors with underlying health conditions. Chia says the availability of primary care is especially essential during a pandemic.
“During the pandemic it is all more so important to actually treat those underlying conditions," she says. "We know that for a fact if a patient does get COVID, and if they’re actually healthier, they do have a higher chance of surviving COVID.”
Over a fifth of Ohioans are currently enrolled in Medicare programs. Availability of primary health care during the COVID-19 crisis is essential to keeping local seniors safe.