With a new and expanded location in Oswego, ConnextCare will increase services related to primary care, mental health and dental services
By Stefan Yablonski
Growing up, Tricia Peter-Clark often relied on a school-based health center for access to care.
The health center, as well as her primary care doctor’s office in Pulaski, was operated by Northern Oswego County Health Services Inc., the predecessor to ConnextCare, the organization she now leads.
Peter-Clark grew up in Sandy Creek, graduated from the local high school and went to Buffalo for college.
“I retuned home after graduation and began working at Oswego County Opportunities in 2004 as the coordinator of the cancer services program,” she said.
Later she became coordinator of the Rural Health Network of Oswego County, focusing on collaboration between providers.
She started with ConnextCare in 2013 as the chief operating officer and later became executive vice president under former president and CEO Daniel Dey.
Peter-Clark became ConnextCare’s president and chief executive officer following the retirement of Dey in June 2021.
When she worked on the Rural Health Network of Oswego County, Dey was the chairman of the advisory board.
“Absolutely! Dan Dey was — and still is — an amazing mentor. I learned so much from him during our time together as he was always willing to share his knowledge and experiences with me and offered guidance and perspective that has truly made me a better leader,” she said.
She has been drawn to leadership roles since her youth. While a student at D’Youville College in Buffalo she served as president of the student government. She also served as chairwoman of the athletic committee, coordinating activities and entertainment that took place during the sporting events. In both roles she had to monitor program budgets and interact with administrative staff.
New office opens
ConnextCare has outgrown its office at 10 George St. in Oswego.
The site offered primary care, mental health services and substance use disorder services.
“The facility only had 12 exam rooms, which ConnextCare was quickly outgrowing,” Peter-Clark said. “The relocation of the office to 120 E. First St. in downtown Oswego will double the number of exam rooms and allow ConnextCare to offer dental services.”
Its dental services were only offered in ConnextCare’s Pulaski and Fulton offices and school-based health centers throughout the county.
“ConnextCare’s lease at George Street was expiring, which offered an opportunity to look at our current scope of practice at this location in comparison to community need,” she explained. “Our needs assessment prioritized patient access specifically to primary care, mental health and dental services. With this data, ConnextCare began looking for available land to build a new health center or an existing building that we could renovate to house the services we were looking to provide.”
This led them to the 120 E. First St. property.
“[It] is truly a dream come true as the location is central within the city, making it convenient for patients to walk to the office for care or take public transportation that routinely passes by this location,” she added.
It is within walking distance to many public housing buildings in the city.
ConnextCare invested $11.8 million in the project.
The George Street building is owned by Oswego County Opportunities. Aqua Spa Float Center & Wellness Boutique also rents space at the building.
At the George Street location in 2024, ConnextCare provided 20,035 visits. The new East First Street site means more can be seen.
They weren’t accepting new medical patients. However, they’ve added dental services and were accepting and scheduling new patients to be seen at the site on March 31, Peter-Clark added.
They are adding more programs … more staff.
Currently ConnextCare has 273 employees, 47 medical providers, 14 dental providers and 19 mental health providers.
“In addition to expanding the primary care and mental health services we already provide, we will begin offering dental, with seven, state-of-the-art dental operatories ready to open on the second floor,” she said. “As for increased staff, we estimate the addition of 23 new jobs.”
The new building’s ground floor includes 18 primary-care exam rooms as well as provider office spaces.
The second floor contains seven dental-exam rooms along with various workspaces and break rooms for staff.
Unique challenges
A federally qualified health center (FQHC) is a community-based health care organization that provides comprehensive primary care and support services to underserved populations in the United States.
“ConnextCare, as a federally qualified health center, is required to treat everyone who walks through our doors, insured or not,” she said. “This means that we face unique challenges that other providers may not, from both a financial and workforce perspective.
“About 70% of the federal grant dollars community health centers receive to help offset some of our costs is set to expire at the end of March, while the other 30% is part of the annual appropriations bill that is also subject to the uncertainty of another short-term extension this month [March].
“Although we have had bipartisan support for community health centers for the last several decades, our funding has remained relatively flat compared to our patient growth and the rate of inflation,” she said. “We need a long-term funding solution!”
“Our current FQHC costs exceed our PPS rate by 44%. As of Dec. 31, 2024, total FQHC expense ratio per patient visit is $242 and our current PPS (Prospective Payment System) rate of reimbursement is $133.05,” said Tracy Wimmer, CFO. “As of Dec. 31, 2023, our total FQHC expense ratio per patient visit was $241 and our PPS rate of reimbursement was $128.51.”
Troubling tariffs
“It is anticipated that the tariffs implemented by the Trump administration will affect costs in the health care supply chain, as China plays a significant role in the production of the medical supplies and pharmaceuticals that we rely on here in the US.,” Peter-Clark said. “Outside of increased costs, we could likely experience delays in receipt of the supplies, as items typically go on allocation by the distributors when they are limited.
“Although we haven’t directly felt this yet because we have enough supplies on hand, we are extremely concerned with the financial impact of this, as we have already seen pharmaceutical costs increase by greater than $1.8 million in the last two years.”
Since the initial notice of the funding freeze, ConnextCare has adjusted internal operations to better prepare for what is likely to come.
This included a hiring freeze for nonessential positions, inventory control between sites and the adjustment of operations to allow for increased access for its patients.
“I continue to remind my team to focus on the things that we can control, which is patient access and volume, so that we are prepared to manage the things that we can’t,” she said. “We will keep advocating at the state and federal level for increased funding to support community health centers who are the best, most innovative and most resilient part of our nation’s health system.”
Significantly concerned
Community health centers are significantly concerned about potential cuts to the Medicaid program.
“Here in New York, about 47% of CHC funding comes from Medicaid and about 62% of all CHC patients rely on Medicaid for coverage. CHCs play a significant role in providing access for those on Medicaid, serving one in every five Medicaid beneficiaries statewide,” she said. “In addition, our rate of patients with no insurance is nearly three times the New York state average. Cuts to the Medicaid program would be detrimental for many of our patients, particularly the 41% who are children and seniors.
“ConnextCare serves everyone regardless of their insurance coverage or ability to pay. So a loss of coverage would likely lead to increased self-pay visits, where we would collect only a portion of the total charge for the visit, if anything at all. Without insurance coverage, patients will delay accessing care or seek alternative options, such as an emergency room or urgent care, where the cost of care is much higher.
“Any cut to the Medicaid program, even a marginal one, will have a serious financial impact on ConnextCare. We are already advocating for rate reform at the state level to close the mounting gap between our current CHC Medicaid payment rates and the true costs of delivering services.”
50 years of care
ConnextCare is no longer just in Northern Oswego County. It is a robust network of ‘Connexted’ health centers, spanning all across Oswego County and is stronger than ever before, according to Peter-Clark.
Established in 1975, ConnextCare Pulaski is a patient-centered health care practice providing Northern Oswego and Southern Jefferson County residents with a variety of comprehensive health care, dental and related services. The center is operated by ConnextCare, a private, federally funded nonprofit organization governed by a volunteer board of directors.
ConnextCare is the largest primary care provider in Oswego County.
It operates health centers in Central Square, Fulton, Mexico, Oswego, Parish, Phoenix and Pulaski. It offers medical, dental, mental health and substance use disorder services.
It also operates nine school-based health centers located in APW, Mexico, Pulaski, Fulton, Oswego and Sandy Creek school districts.
They will see any patient, regardless of ability to pay and offer a sliding fee discount program which will reduce a patient’s charges for services based on their household income.
“ConnextCare’s employees, guided by our dedicated leadership team and volunteer board of directors, are at the heart of our success,” said Peter-Clark. “This team understands the unique opportunities within Oswego County and has the proven ability to adapt quickly to changing environments to achieve the outcomes desired.”
In March 2024, the ConnextCare board of directors presented Peter-Clark with a leadership award for her guidance, vision and advocacy for the organization.
