Is North County Health Services a free clinic and are services free?
     No, our services are not free, although the fees for medical and dental care are based
     on a sliding scale according to a family’s income and size.  North County Health Services is
     a private not-for-profit 501c(3) healthcare organization. 


     Is North County Health Services a county health department/agency?
     NCHS is a private, not-for-profit health care agency. It is not a county agency. The word  
     “county” in our name refers to the region in which we operate our health centers and where
     we typically provide services; we provide healthcare to persons in the North San Diego County
     region. We are a federally qualified health center (FQHC) and migrant health center.

     Do you take care of undocumented people?
     NCHS provides health services to persons needing healthcare. We do not require  
     clients/patients to provide proof of legal status, nor do we report this information. 

     Are your services only for people who don’t have insurance and who are poor?
     Health and dental care at North County Health Services are not exclusively for the
     medically uninsured and the poor; they are for the community.  Most of our patients pay for  
     services on a sliding scale. Approximately 52% of our clients have Medi-Cal, this is the
     population considered “underinsured”.  7% are children with Healthy Families.  3% of our  
     patients have commercial insurance. We are a provider for CPSP (Comprehensive Perinatal
     Services Program), CHDP (Child Health and Disability Program) and other state, county and
     federal programs.

     Do your clinicians have good credentials?
     Physicians (M.D.) who are employed by North County Health Services are board-certified
     or board eligible. We also employ licensed nurse practitioners and physician assistants. Our
     medical providers abide by the highest standard of care.

     Do you have many health centers?
     North County Health Services operates eleven (11) health centers, of which one is a
     free-standing dental office, and one is a comprehensive mobile medical/dental clinic. Each  
     of our health centers has a unique name reflecting the community that it serves (i.e.
     Carlsbad Family Medicine, Ramona Health Center). These health centers are operated by  
     North County Health Services, which is the corporate umbrella organization.

     Download a pdf version of our 2010 Facts and FAQs  
     /sites/default/files/2010%20Facts%20and%20FAQs%20112911.pdf