Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic in Lafayette

The LSUSD satellite dental clinic, established in 1998, is located at the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic (LCHCC). LCHCC is a free clinic established in 1993 by the Lafayette Parish Medical Society in response to the growing number of uninsured working families with no access to health care. Its mission is to serve the working uninsured living in Lafayette Parish. LCHCC is operated with minimal paid staff and hundreds of volunteer health care providers: physicians, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, dental assistants and dental hygienists from Lafayette and surrounding parishes. With regard to dental care, volunteers and LSUSD dental hygiene students provide a range of preventive dental hygiene services.

In 1999, to address a shortage of dental-hygiene professionals in Southwest Louisiana, the LSUHSC School of Dentistry also launched a Bachelor of Science degree in dental hygiene. The laboratory and clinical courses are taught at the Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic and the didactic courses are transmitted to the LCHCC from the LSUSD Dental Hygiene Program in New Orleans. Dental educators nationwide have hailed the program as a national model.

Patient Information

The Clinic's mission is to serve the working uninsured living in Lafayette Parish. Patients are screened based on eligibility criteria. Initially, patients are eligible for one year of service. Each patient is re-evaluated for eligibility annually. Services are provided by appointment.

The Clinic is unable to provide services to people with medical insurance, Medicare, or Medicaid; job-related injuries involving Workers Compensation; or a pending medical-based lawsuit.

Patients must have the following qualifications:

• Resident of Lafayette Parish
• Working or actively seeking employment (unemployed for less than eight weeks)
• No health insurance
• Low to moderate income; total household income may not exceed 200% of Federal Poverty Guidelines.

Patients are asked to bring the following:

• Photo ID
• Most recent paystub for self and all members of household
• Proof of residency in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana (utility bill or other official mail with name and Lafayette Parish address)
• Social Security numbers and dates of birth of all members of household
• 1040 Tax Return

Clinic services and patient education materials are in English, which is the primary language in the Lafayette Parish community. In the event that a patient does not speak English fluently, we ask the patient to come with a family member who speaks English.

Contact Us

Lafayette Community Health Care Clinic
1317 Jefferson Street
Lafayette, LA 70501
Patient Information: 337-235-2299
Business Phone: 337-593-9208
FAX: 337-593-9209
Email: clinics1@bellsouth.net