Pasco, WA, May 13, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PASCO, WASH. - Tri-Cities Community Health (www.mytcch.org), a non-profit health care agency, is encouraging the community to Experience the Give for its inaugural, annual retro-style telethon on KNDU (www.kndu.com) with the goal of raising $1 million to continue meeting the needs of its patients.
Local businesses, service groups and Tri-Cities leaders are stepping up to help raise money and Experience the Give. Starting May 20, there will be weekly promotional and business challenges as well as patient stories on the air leading up to the live event. All fundraising will be capped with a one-hour telethon from Tri-City Community Health's Pasco facility at 7 p.m. on June 21.
Tri-Cities Community Health is a remarkable health organization because its doors are open to everyone, whether they have health insurance or not. Having a health care organization like Tri-Cities Community Health in the community provides much-needed services for those seeking quality health care, regardless of their ability to pay. It also aids local hospitals by providing an outlet to overcrowded emergency rooms.
The patients of Tri-Cities Community Health are not who you may think. Its patients may include your coffee barista, your hairdresser, your elderly neighbor, your child's daycare teacher and maybe even you.
The agency serves as a safety net for valued members of our community. It provided health care to more than 21,000 patients in 2012. About 40 percent did not have health insurance and about 47 percent of the patients were covered by Medicaid.
"To help cover about 60 percent of the cost of providing health services to the uninsured, Tri-Cities Community Health receives federal grant funding," said CEO Al Cordova. "However, this funding has stayed at the same level through the last two years while the number of uninsured patients we see has increased by 10 percent because of the recession and the rise in unemployment."
From May 20 through June 21, log on to experiencethegive.com to donate to this much-needed organization. Or call in at 7 p.m. June 21 and pledge your donation on the air. Today, you can help support a health clinic that does not turn anyone away.
Patient Crystal Arceo, a Tri-Cities mother of five, said she thanks God every day for the medical care its providers have given her whole family.
"It's nice to see there are doctors who do care - who take the time to take a second look," Arceo said. "The doctors at TCCH are great and care about their patients. If you need anything they're always there."
Please help us make sure Tri-Cities Community Health is always there.
Tri-Cities Community Health serves the entire Tri-Cities geographical area by ensuring anyone in need of cost-effective, high-quality primary care services has access to quality health care.
Visit mytcch.org for more information.
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