Sponsored by Open Health Care Clinic
When Tim Young joined the organization that would become Open Health Care Clinic on Sept. 20, 1996, he didn’t have much of a staff to lead.
“I was the only employee at that time,” Young says. “We had a half-million-dollar budget.”
Today, Young is marking his 30th anniversary at the helm of an organization with more than 200 employees and an annual operating budget of approximately $85 million. Open Health now serves nearly 17,000 patients each year through eight locations and two mobile medical and dental units.
“So it’s taken me 30 years,” he says, “but at least I have something to show for it.”
Founded in 1995 as the HIV/AIDS Alliance for Region Two (HAART), the nonprofit was initially 100% state funded and served as a fiscal agent and planning body for HIV services in the Baton Rouge area. That changed in 2007, when Baton Rouge became a Ryan White grantee separate from the state and Open Health began providing direct services. In 2015, it became a federally qualified health center (FQHC).
Today, Open Health provides primary, dental and behavioral health care for adults and children regardless of their insurance or ability to pay. It also operates a pharmacy, housing programs and a statewide program that helps eligible Louisianans living with HIV cover insurance costs.
“We have eight locations now, including one at the One Stop Homeless Center that we’re very proud of because that’s closest to our mission,” Young says.
“We built this tremendous community asset in Open Health and now we’ve got to make sure that we have plans in place so that it’s sustainable into the future.”
On average, Open Health’s patient base has grown more than 10% each year, and Young expects demand to climb further as stricter Medicaid work requirements take effect early next year.
“The longer it takes to get that information out to people and for organizations to prepare to respond, the more difficult it’s going to be and the more care will be delayed for some patients,” he says.
To stay ahead of that growth, Open Health has shifted its real estate strategy. “Our path has been that as we acquired buildings, we outgrew them too quickly,” Young says. “In the past several years, we’ve decided to try to leapfrog our growth.”
In Mid-City, the organization converted a former Baton Rouge General building into a dental clinic with 18 operatories. On Airline Highway, it purchased the 72,000-square-foot former Louisiana Farm Bureau headquarters, which houses medical and behavioral health services with extended hours. With help from state legislative funding, renovations will add a new tower entrance with modern elevators, while the upper floors will be built out as demand requires.
Open Health also recently purchased a larger building in Denham Springs – a former pediatric practice near Walmart – that will expand its capacity from four exam rooms to 10.
“Without the dedication and commitment of the people who volunteer on our board of directors, we could not do this.”
Other priorities for its fourth decade include expanding school-based health centers beyond the 10 East Baton Rouge Parish schools it currently serves, deploying a new two-operatory mobile dental unit to schools and health fairs, and launching a physical therapy practice to improve access for Medicaid patients.
The newly established Open Health Foundation will help secure the organization’s long-term sustainability.
“We built this tremendous community asset in Open Health and now we’ve got to make sure that we have plans in place so that it’s sustainable into the future,” Young says.
While proud of that legacy, Young said the credit belongs elsewhere.
“Without the dedication and commitment of the people who volunteer on our board of directors, we could not do this,” he says. “They don’t get paid for their service. They are the true silent heroes behind the organization.”
Learn how you can help support the Open Health Care mission at ohcc.org/foundation.
