"I thought it was, what's the right word, ill-conceived, shall we say? And merciless as well. Particularly in the way it treats the poor and the disabled in our society."

Crist chats with James Keane, Metros fundraising and events manager.Kate BradshawAs we wrote about last year, Metro Wellness is a nonprofit that offers specialized care and advocacy for the region's LGBT residents everything from HIV tests to hormone replacement therapy for gender transition to counseling for gay and trans youth. It's headquartered on the western edge of St. Petersburg's Kenwood neighborhood in an area where new apartment buildings seem to be going up by the month.

They're in the middle of a massive expansion officials with the organization say will better equip them to meet the needs of the community. And with any luck, event and retail space they plan on renting out will boost their revenue.

July of 2018 their target for cutting the proverbial ribbon is a long way off.

But with the looming (though uncertain) repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act and a spike in new HIV cases (largely among gay minority men under 30), demand for what they do will probably go up well before then.

On Wednesday morning, former Governor and current Congressman Charlie Crist, D-St. Petersburg, checked out the facility for the first time.

He did his usual thing introducing himself to the dozens of staff members going about their day, making conversation about sports and hometowns.

Crist speaks to Metro's CEO, who was home recovering from knee surgery, as Priya Rajkumar looks on.Kate Bradshaw

He was there to show his support for Metro and to find out more about what they do. As a Democrat in Congress, it doesn't seem likely that Crist could do all that much in D.C. in terms of pulling down federal money.

Metro doesn't get much in the way of federal funding anyway, beyond grants and savings on medications it doles out via the 340B Prescription Drug Program. Many of the services they provide are free, and they take insurance when it's applicable.

But if millions of people lose their health care under the Republicans' Affordable Health Care Act, that could put a huge burden on health nonprofits like Metro.

The health care act is going to be pretty crucial for us in terms of our ability to move forward as an organization, said Priya Rajkumar, Metro's chief operating officer, as she and her colleagues gave Crist the grand tour.

Needless to say, Crist wasn't a fan of the GOP plan, either.

I thought it was, what's the right word, ill-conceived, shall we say? And merciless as well. Particularly in the way it treats the poor and the disabled in our society. I think it's on its way to nowhere. I hope, he told Metro CEO Lorraine Langlois, who was at home recovering from a knee surgery at the time of the tour, during a phone call in which he congratulated her on Metro's success.

Notably, the tour took place the day before Pride Month starts. In June, St. Petersburg hosts the biggest Pride festival in the state. Metro has long been something of a hub during the event, as an adjacent parking lot served the parade's staging area for years. This year, the event's parade portion will take place in downtown St. Pete and the former staging area now belongs to a developer. There was controversy over the move, especially since Kenwood and the Grand Central District, where the parade has taken place for over a decade, make up the city's first gay-friendly area.

Perhaps the downtown move is a sign of how mainstream Pride has become, and how welcoming St. Pete is. Even so, given the political climate and the ideological bent that's helping shape federal and state health care policy, the need for services that cater to the LGBT community like the ones Metro provides isn't going anywhere.

Go here to see the original:
As specter of GOP healthcare overhaul looms, Crist tours expanding LGBT clinic in St. Pete - Creative Loafing Tampa

Comments are closed.