Picture an old chemistry lab being used as a health care clinic for the local community. That's exactly what Dr. Sara Bode, medical director of School-based Health Services at Nationwide Children's Hospital, said is happening in one Ohio high school.
"Some of our offices can look like a medical health center. It might have multiple exam rooms," Bode said. But in other schools, the space might be more limited. But the number of facilities is growing, bringing health care to people who might otherwise go without.
In 1995, the first health center based on school grounds opened in Ohio. Today, there are 138 of those centers throughout the state in 49 school districts in 27 of Ohio’s 88 counties.
The Ohio General Assembly has provided $20 million to expand the clinics over the next two years. Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said the health care centers open to the communities on school grounds are providing important services to people who face barriers to medical care.
“This can help overcome many of the barriers that we know prevent people from seeking reliable care, such as the lack of reliable transportation, the challenges of a parent or guardian taking time off work to take a student to an appointment, or simply an inadequate number of providers in a particular area," Vanderhoff said in a call with reporters.
The health care provided at these facilities is often available to the entire community, not just students. The facilities can be inside schools or simply on school grounds. The care provided at them is usually covered by Medicaid and Medicare, as well as private insurance plans.
About 530,000 Ohioans who rely on subsidies to afford insurance on the Affordable Health Care marketplace are in a quandary right now. Many are facing steep increases in their premiums because federal funding for subsidies to make those plans more affordable have been cut. Some families have said they won't be able to maintain health insurance at all. Vanderhoff said it's too early to know how the uncertainty of that situation will affect the ability of these centers to continue to provide care to students who lack insurance coverage.
Health leaders urge Ohioans to get vaccinations now
Also on that call with journalists, Vanderhoff pushed Ohioans to consider vaccines against diseases that are expected to be on the rise as temperatures drop.
Vanderhoff said said there are low levels of RSV, COVID-19, and flu in Ohio right now, but "typically, we experience an uptick around Thanksgiving and then a peak around Christmas followed by a second peak and usually larger toward the end of February."
Vanderhoff said RSV vaccines should be given to anyone over 75 years old, as well as those who are susceptible to heart and lung conditions, pregnant women, and babies whose mothers were not vaccinated for the virus.
Flu vaccines are recommended for anyone six months or older. The latest COVID-19 vaccine is still recommended for people who are 65 and older, as well as those who have health conditions that put them at greater risk if they contract the virus.
Vanderhoff said there have been outbreaks of measles in unvaccinated students, most recently in Central Ohio. He said parents should get their children vaccinated with MMR vaccines as recommended. Some adults might need to get revaccinated too. ODH said people who know they got the killed measles vaccine should be revaccinated with the current, live measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. Not many people fall into this group; the killed vaccine was given to fewer than one million people between 1963 and 1967. If a patient was vaccinated between 1963 and 1967 and does not know the type of vaccine they received, they should be revaccinated with the MMR vaccine if possible.
Vanderhoff said pharmacies throughout Ohio can give vaccines without requiring a prescription first. The school-based health care centers can also provide vaccinations at those facilities. But Vanderhoff said anyone seeking a vaccine should call ahead to the medical facility for details on how to do that.
