Help us fund low-cost acupuncture

Hi, my name is Alice Forbes Spear. My business partner, Jenny Kim Jacobson, and I are opening a new acupuncture clinic, Open Care Community (OCC). At Open Care Community, we aim to ensure that all New Yorkers can receive the care they need, regardless of their income - and we need your help!

Open Care Community will provide sliding-scale community acupuncture, herbal medicine, private acupuncture, massage, nutrition counseling, and more. Our sliding scale, which offers treatments between $40-85, makes acupuncture within reach of many, but not all New Yorkers. We launched this GoFundMe to support low-cost treatments because we know that $40 is too much for people with very low incomes. All funds raised will go toward supplementing $20 appointments. These appointments are reserved for patients who: qualify for Medicare or Medicaid; qualify for SNAP/EBT benefits; fixed-income seniors; individuals who receive disability benefits; and undocumented individuals. All small businesses run on tight margins, especially in New York City. Your funding will allow us to offer low-cost treatments in our first year, providing a model should we decide to form a non-profit in the future. More importantly, Jenny and I won't have to choose between paying our staff a decent wage and providing really affordable care.

The past few years shed light on the inequalities that permeate all aspects of our society, particularly health care. Inflation has only made things worse for struggling New Yorkers. While we know that one small business can not fix such a broken system, we are committed to doing our part to make care available to those who need it. I appreciate your help.

Please note that GoFundMe automatically adds a tip to all donations - you can change your tip amount to zero if you like. For more info, please click here: https://support.gofundme.com/hc/en-us/articles/360051144952-Choosing-a-tip-amount