Blue Mountain Clinic

Blue Mountain Clinic is a mission-driven 501(c)3 non-profit corporation organized in the state of Montana and is governed by a volunteer board of directors. Located at 610 N California Street in Missoula, MT, we are one of the only independent, family medicine clinics in the United States that has fully integrated primary care, mental health counseling, contraceptive and abortion care, and comprehensive gender affirming care into our daily practice. BMC directly impacts the lives of over 4,000 patients per year who access a wide range of health services within our choice-based, primary medicine model. This is evidenced by the fact that 25% of our clients are traveling 100 miles or more to receive care at BMC. Blue Mountain Clinic is called upon daily by those who need care for themselves or their families, at an ever-increasing rate. This is a direct reflection of changes in our current healthcare environment; expanded services at BMC, lack of access due to clinic closures both in our region, across the state, and across the country. Per the US Census Bureau, Montana and the Northern Rockies are home to some of the least populated regions, resulting in a large concentration of rural areas. These sparsely populated areas often result in very limited access to many of lifes necessities, including health care. Reports released by the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Family Physicians indicate that we will continue to experience a critical shortage of family medicine clinicians and clinics. The shortage is due in part to retiring physicians as well as a recent trend emerging where providers are choosing specialty areas of medicine over family medicine because they offer much higher salaries. In a report released by the Montana Office of Rural Health (MORH) a serious shortage of primary care physician services is cited in Montana. It is of the utmost importance that we remain a sound presence to ensure access to independent, choice-based health care that respects the power of personal connection.We are starting our 12th year providing critical gynecological training to residents in the Western Montana Family Medicine Residency Program. We train approximately 10 residents a year preparing them to provide reproductive and family medical care through our choice-based lens. We strive to ensure that these residents will continue to practice and provide comprehensive healthcare in our rural areas, many of which Blue Mountain Clinic currently serves.Throughout 2022, we continued to face challenges in health care delivery due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our clinic has responded rapidly and decisively with a combination of telemedicine and in-person access. We have been and will continue to meet the primary care, gender affirming, and reproductive health care needs of our community.