Pawley’s Island free clinic gets $5,000

For nurse practitioner Susan Surratt, coming to work Monday morning at the Smith Medical Clinic, felt a little extra special. That’s because the clinic that gives free health care was recognized for its efforts with a $5,000 check to help fund prescription medications for her patients who can’t afford them.

“It’s like we are now beginning to be recognized by the state,” said Surratt. “This is the first time I think this past year that any free clinic had received money.“

The gift is a result of a settlement that was reached by 28 state attorneys general with Caremark, one of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits management companies. State Attorney General Henry McMaster, who presented the clinic with the check, was one of the 28 involved with bringing a lawsuit against the company.

“That’s a big company that was supposed to be providing wholesale medicine for state health plans and other big companies providing all the medicine for them,” explained McMaster, “and doing so at the least price, but it turns out they weren’t doing it at the least price.“

The Pawley’s Island clinic has been especially helpful to patients like Licile Williamson and Ashley McKenzie. Both of them are unable to buy their much needed and expensive medication elsewhere.

“It benefits me a lot,” said Williamson “because I can’t afford to go to a regular doctor.”

McKenzie had the same problem. “I have no insurance,” she said, “so this is a big help for not only me but everyone else that comes here.”