Chillicothe Clinic Becomes the 29th Site in DeWine’s Appalachian Children’s Health Initiative

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CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio — The 29th clinic in Governor Mike DeWine’s Appalachian Children’s Health Initiative opened last week in the Chillicothe City School District, and the governor marked it Wednesday as the program’s latest school-based site.

DeWine said the clinics are “a lasting investment in the health and future of Ohio’s children,” and that “tomorrow’s leaders are receiving care today.” The Ohio Department of Development graphic attached to his post puts the program at $64,157,068 across 20 counties, 16 healthcare partners, 34 school districts and 36 communities. It also lists 33,000 patient visits and an average 3.19 hours of classroom time saved per student.

The Chillicothe site is Adena Health’s Cavalier Care Clinic, in a space on the high school and middle school campus. Adena says it offers preventive care, chronic disease management, mental health support, immunizations and physicals without a student leaving school. Interim superintendent Kathy Payne said many Chillicothe students have not had consistent health care. The district’s award, announced in 2024, was $662,130.

That is not the only local piece of the grant.

Ross County also has the Adena Local Warrior Wellness Center in Frankfort, awarded $5,754,118, and a Huntington Local school-based clinic awarded $556,290. A Ross mobile vision project was awarded $240,700. Adena has also put grant-funded sites at Union-Scioto Local and Pickaway-Ross Career and Technology Center.

Pike County’s Scioto Valley clinic in Piketon opened in November 2025 on a $1,695,701 award, in partnership with Valley View Health Centers. Waverly is on a shared mobile-health grant.

Highland County’s Fairfield Local clinic in Leesburg was awarded $3,235,560. Greenfield is on the same mobile route as Waverly, Wellston, Southeastern and Zane Trace, a shared $232,965 award.

Gallia County’s Gallia Academy wellness center in Gallipolis was funded with a $2.6 million grant from the initiative, partnered with Holzer. Adams County Ohio Valley Schools received $1,337,328 for telehealth and a mobile unit. Jackson County’s Wellston schools are on the mobile health and mobile vision projects. Scioto County is listed in the Piketon clinic’s service area.

Services differ by site. The program was written to cover primary care, dental, vision and mental health. The money sits inside the larger Appalachian Community Grant Program, a $500 million commitment to Ohio’s 32-county Appalachian region. The clinic dollars went to the Appalachian Children Coalition and are administered by the Governor’s Office of Appalachia.

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