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In this interview, Nicole Lamoureux shares how the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics (NAFC) ensures that underserved communities receive equitable access to quality healthcare.
Listen to the full interview of Nicole Lamoureux with Adam Torres on the Mission Matters Innovation Podcast.
What led you to NAFC, the National Association of Free and Charitable Clinics?
Lamoureux says she was always interested in politics, and while working for the National Association of Homebuilders and the American Horse Council after graduating from Catholic University, she realized she wanted to give back more. Around that same time, she was diagnosed with breast cancer; while using her insurance to access the care she needed, she empathized with people who didn’t have that privilege.
“Soon after, I started finding free and charitable clinics across the US and ended up building an organization,” she explains. What started with just 75 members now includes more than 1,400 participating organizations across the country.
The importance of equitable healthcare
Lamoureux notes that a misconception exists about the Affordable Care Act, which some people presume has given everyone access to health insurance. That’s untrue, she says, and as a result, the healthcare landscape is not equitable today: not every employer offers coverage for employees, not all health care plans on the marketplace are affordable, and many people have little to no access to the mental health care, dental care, or prescription medications they need.
She stresses that insurance needs to be more understandable for people, and that health literacy should also be an area of focus. The fact that so many people of color — particularly those who are Black or Indigenous — have different, often deeply suboptimal health care experiences in the US compared to their white counterparts means that “we should recognize the differences and make healthcare more affordable, accessible, and…
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