Following a gas line explosion that destroyed their former offices, the 9th Street Clinic – a longtime free clinic for patients without health insurance – has reopened out of a temporary space at UPMC McKeesport.
The free clinic had operated in the cramped basement of the former YMCA building since 2007; that building was severely damaged by an explosion in August.
The popular once-a-week walk-in clinic is now seeing patients on the third floor of the Painter Building at UPMC McKeesport.
“We're still up and running. I think there's been a lot of confusion that the clinic is gone. … We want everyone to know that we are still here for the community. We have not closed doors,” said Dr. Yui Sugiura, the clinic’s medical director.
The explosion also destroyed all the clinic’s supplies and donated medical equipment.
The clinic assists with everything from employment physicals to acute issues like abscesses. Many patients have chronic diseases like hypertension or diabetes, said Dr. Sugiura.
The Painter Building office is a temporary home, and they are actively looking for a permanent office closer to their old 9th Street location, she said.
All the clinics employees and volunteers are UPMC employees, and the hospital system supports the clinic with some funding, though it is not technically a UPMC entity.
Roughly 45,000 people in Allegheny County are uninsured, according to census estimates.
The 9th Street Clinic in McKeesport sees patients starting at 1 pm on Thursdays. For more information, call 412-664-4304 or visit their Facebook page.
