From monetary costs to physical proximity, receiving health care in the rural Ozarks – and beyond – can be challenging.
In southwest Missouri, Dr. John Lorette explained to me how he is working to make it easier for people to cope with those realities. In 2018, the retired emergency physician founded Volunteers in Medicine Christian County, a nonprofit that cares for uninsured individuals who are 18 to 64 and live at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, which in 2025 was about $64,300 for a family of four, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.
The volunteer-powered nonprofit, part of the national Volunteers in Medicine network (VIM), offers two clinics each month: One that moves throughout the region and another based in a “tiny” home on a church parking lot…