LORAIN, Ohio — A Lorain County nonprofit says it’s seeing the fallout as Job and Family Services workers enter their tenth week of an ongoing strike.
The Lorain County Free Clinic started as a temporary stopgap during an economic downturn in the 1980s. But the need for healthcare and medication assistance has only increased over the years.
We see this as a clinic of last resort, so to speak, like people who fall through the cracks that have nowhere else to go,” said Director of Operations Kathleen Janda.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Free Clinic, which has spent the past decade in a former private practice doctor’s office on Oberlin Avenue in Lorain.
"Otherwise, a lot of people just don’t have access to healthcare that don’t have insurance through their employer or maybe through Medicaid,” explained Executive Director Paul Baumgartner, Jr.
The nonprofit’s directors recently contacted News 5, reporting an increase in demand in recent months.
“We don’t want anyone falling through the cracks and that’s what’s sort of starting to happen with the strike,” Janda said.
She said at least a dozen new patients have needed to lean on the clinic’s free pharmacy services after lapses in their Medicaid coverage. The Free Clinic operates its own on-site pharmacy stocked with common medications. The nonprofit also contracts with Marc’s to provide any other medications it does not carry.
Janda said current patients are also seeing delays in paperwork processing to qualify for free medication. Those not on Medicaid are required to submit denial letters to drug manufacturers to participate in programs that cover medication costs.
In one instance, Janda said a patient recently took their last dose of a popular asthma medication. Out-of-pocket, the medicine costs about $4,000 monthly. But with a Medicaid denial letter, the manufacturer will cover all expenses for qualifying patients.
The Free Clinic will foot the bill for its patients, but the directors worry the extra expenses could outpace the nonprofit’s normal budget.
"The last thing we want to see happen, especially from this strike, is to see someone go without medication,” Janda said.
She and others attribute the backlog of benefits to an ongoing workers’ strike. JFS workers have been on the picket line for almost 10 weeks as contract negotiations reached an impasse.
RELATED: Lorain County Job and Family Services employees go on strike
Other viewers have reached out to News 5 in recent weeks with concerns over Medicaid lapses, delays in childcare vouchers and challenges with elder abuse claims.
"They’re getting fed up and we’re getting fed up because it’s been too long,” said JFS childcare inspector Jennifer Verda.
She’s been among the 140 workers striking for better wages at JFS since mid-February.
"We don’t want to hurt anybody, obviously. We don’t want anybody to fall through the cracks, but we have to be able to feed ourselves and our families,” she said.
Inside the building, fewer than half of the normal staff have been working for the past 10 weeks. Via email, JFS Director Christopher Cabot said most employees have been working overtime to keep up with caseloads.
He said Medicaid recipients may see interruptions in benefits only if they submit their reapplications late. He said other departments are operating with minimal delays.
"We recognize that any delay in providing services is difficult for those that we serve. The staff that continue to work here are making extraordinary efforts to ensure that services are provided as timely as possible,” Cabot said in a statement.
Lorain County Commissioner Dave Moore was not available for an interview on Tuesday. By phone, he said the union representing Children’s Services recently accepted a contract similar to the “best and final offer” presented to JFS workers.
JFS workers told News 5 they’re already making much less than their counterparts at Children’s Services. The county maintains that it cannot afford to offer more to the JFS workers’ union.
As both sides hold their ground, service providers like the Lorain County Free Clinic said they’re worried about what effects a prolonged strike could have.
"You’re talking about people’s lives here, and that’s scary,” said Janda.
Catherine Ross is the Lorain County reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @CatherineRossTV, on Facebook CatherineRossTV or email her at Catherine.Ross@wews.com.
