ROYAL OAK, MI (October 28, 2010) – Covenant Community Care has opened its third location to provide healthcare to the uninsured and underinsured in the Detroit area.

The new clinic is a collaboration of Covenant Community Care and Beaumont Hospital.

The clinic hopes to serve about 8,000 patients a year by treating illnesses and also offering preventative care. That is expected to lead to fewer costly visits to emergency rooms and easier access to care.

Patients whose income falls 200 percent below the poverty level can expect to pay about $20 to $40 for a doctor’s visit. That means a family of four making around $34,000 and below would qualify for the discounts, according to Executive Director Paul Propson. However, people are provided care regardless of their ability to pay.

Several Evangelical Covenant churches started the first clinic in 2003. A $2.3 million federal grant in 2008 enabled a second site to open in partnership with Southwest Solutions (SWS), a provider of mental health and housing services (SWS is not a faith-based organization).

Southwest sought the partnership when it noticed that some of its clients were being treated at the clinic. The grant enabled the clinic to open its second primary care site at a SWS location.

The clinic, located at 27776 Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak, is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Tuesdays from noon to 8 p.m., and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call 248-556-4900.