CareSouth Carolina to expand operational hours at five medical sites

Today, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced an investment in CareSouth Carolina that will allow the organization to add additional hours of operation to support the critical clinical and administrative staff necessary for early morning (before work), night, and weekend hours.

Since health centers see patients regardless of their ability to pay, this expansion of operating hours will be particularly critical for people who are uninsured, underinsured, or have Medicaid coverage and struggle to find affordable care outside of traditional business hours and cannot afford expensive visits to urgent care, retail clinics or emergency departments. 

CareSouth Carolina will be adding three additional hours of operation per week for its Bishopville, Bennettsville, and Rosa Lee Gerald (Society Hill) centers. The organization will also have two additional hours of operation per week in Cheraw, and four additional hours per week at its Chesterfield center.

“We believe that expanding the hours of operation at five of our centers will make services more accessible - especially for  those whose work hours limit current access,” CareSouth Carolina CEO Ann Lewis said. “The five locations, Bishopville, Cheraw Bennettsville, Rosa Lee Gerald in Society Hill and Chesterfield will each have regularly scheduled weekly expanded hours.  We are hiring a special team to assure that these expanded hours are consistently available.”

This funding will also help health center patients with common challenges in accessing health care – for example, taking a child to the doctor after work or getting a timely appointment when you are not feeling well on the weekend – and help connect patients to preventive services and resources for health-related social needs to improve health outcomes. 

Many patients currently forgo care altogether in these circumstances, putting their health at greater risk and leading to more expensive visits to emergency departments when conditions get more serious. 

“No one should have to delay or skip a trip to the doctor because of work or school. The millions of Americans who can’t miss their daytime work shift, whose kids are in school, who have limited child care, or who face transportation challenges deserve the same access to quality care,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “These investments will help to extend operating hours, especially for patients in rural or underserved communities nationwide. I'm proud to be part of an Administration that leaves nobody behind.”  

HRSA-supported health centers provide access to primary care services—regardless of an individual’s ability to pay—for over 31 million patients at more than 15,000 service sites in high need communities. More than 90 percent of health center patients have incomes below 200 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.  

CareSouth Carolina is a private, non-profit community health center delivering patient-centered health and life services in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. CareSouth Carolina operates centers in Bennettsville, Bishopville, Cheraw, Chesterfield, Dillon, Hartsville, Lake View, Latta, McColl and Society Hill.

Services provided by CareSouth Carolina include family medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, women's services, OB/GYN, HIV/AIDS primary care, infectious disease primary care, IV therapy, substance abuse prevention, dental, chiropractic services, pharmacy, senior support services, family support services, clinical counseling, laboratory, ultrasound, X-Ray, agricultural worker health services, podiatry, and veterans choice provider.