Over the weekend, thousands of Americans from across the country traveled to Wise County in Southwest Virginia to attend Mission of Mercy, a Remote Area Medical Clinic held annually that provides free dental and eye exams to those without coverage or those who can’t afford to see doctors on their own.

Our health care legislative aide, Aryana Khalid, was there helping out, and wrote this report:

This weekend, I had the opportunity to volunteer at the RAM/Mission of Mercy Clinic in Wise County for the second year in a row. Southwest Virginia is one of the neediest areas in Virginia, particularly for dental care. The region is particularly challenged because of a culture that accepts losing teeth at a young age and tends to have poor nutritional habits. So when Mission of Mercy comes to town you can expect there will be long lines, long waits, and people sleeping in tents outside the fairground to get a spot.

Sadly, the lines were worse this year than I had anticipated even when you factor in the recession. It was truly overwhelming to see. It was what I imagine being in a third world country’s health clinic is like. On the first day alone over 1,600 people were admitted onto the fairgrounds, more than double years past. We were unable to see everyone by the end of the weekend. But over the entire weekend, medical, dental, and vision care were provided to 2,715 uninsured and underinsured people.

Despite the numbers and long waits the people of Southwest Virginia were kind and grateful as they always are. They kept thanking me for coming all the way down from DC and I kept saying it was the least I could do to help. In reality, I wasn’t really doing all that much, just helping to keep the line flowing and trying to keep folks entertained with a little conversation and jokes about being in the “hot seat” when they were next in line for service.

The great thing about managing the line is hearing all the great stories. One that sticks out is about Edith and her husband who cook for the volunteers every Friday night of Mission of Mercy. She and her husband are both employed – they are caterers -- but they do not have dental insurance. She said they had both been to the dentist but the price they were quoted for care, over $1,200 for her alone, was something they could not afford. She even tried to set up a payment plan, but couldn’t reach an agreement that worked for her and the dentist.

I was asked to expedite Edith and her husband so they could get back to keep cooking for us. Edith had 15 teeth extracted and then went right on back on to cooking, without missing a beat. I was amazed to see her strength and her desire to provide the volunteers with a little something in exchange for their help. The next day Edith and her husband came by to thank the dentist. They brought him some pork tenderloin as a small gift for what he did for them.

When we talk about health reform and health policy, sometimes many of us forget that there are real people with real lives who are often in pain trying to find a way to make a living and provide for their families. I thank the people of Southwest Virginia for their hospitality, kindness, and for humanizing the work I try to do here on the Hill every day, like no one else could.

Seeing the crowd makes you realize that in the United States, we should not need Missions of Mercy or RAM projects.  It gives me new motivation to keep working on health reform to fix our broken system, so the thousands who came out this weekend don't get turned away again.

NPR was also in Wise County this weekend and filed this report on Monday: