Senator Tim Kaine made two stops in the Northern Neck last week.

On Wednesday, he visited the Northern Neck– Middlesex Free Health Clinic (NNMFHC), where a major focus was the clinic’s planned dental expansion project. The initiative was recently awarded $1 million in congressional funding secured by Kaine.

The capital project aims to improve access and safety for ambulatory and disabled patients. According to the clinic, these patients often face significant barriers to receiving dental care.

“We are incredibly grateful for this funding and for the opportunity to improve access to quality dental care for disabled patients in our region,” said Jeannie Nelson, CEO of NNMFHC. “This project allows us to better meet needs that have existed for years.”

Clinic leadership noted that the dental project will also support workforce development by creating additional staffing opportunities and strengthening educational partnerships with Virginia Commonwealth University, William & Mary, RCC, and local schools to build healthcare career pipelines.

NNMFHC leaders also emphasized that capital funding for the dental expansion does not address rising operational expenses.

“Not a dime of the congressional funding will be going to operating costs,” said William Graham Jr., NNMFHC treasurer. He pointed to the clinic’s rising operating budget paired with a rise in demand.

Another focus of Kaine’s visit in Kilmarnock was consulting with staff and board members, as well as community partners, to better understand the increasing strain on healthcare systems as more Virginians lose Medicaid coverage, a situation that NNMFHC says is already driving more people to free and charitable clinics for care.

Delays and disruptions in Medicaid coverage are directly affecting patient access to care and are expected to increase the number of uninsured residents in Virginia, NNMFHC leaders noted.

“We’re trying to visit as many healthcare facilities as we can to get a sense of what the needs are,” Kaine said.

The senator also made a stop in Warsaw, where he toured the town’s revitalization project.

At Excellent EATS, he met with local business and community leaders. Warsaw officials also used the opportunity to thank Kaine for his support of nearly $6 million in grant funding for RCC’s new Health Sciences Building, which broke ground in late March.