Proyecto Salud Clinic in Baltimore: Sliding-Scale OB/GYN Care on the East Side

Proyecto Salud Clinic is a community health center offering obstetric and gynecologic services to Baltimore residents on East Biddle Street, with a sliding-scale fee structure keyed to household income and a focus on serving uninsured and underinsured patients.

What this clinic actually is

Proyecto Salud operates as a federally qualified health center (FQHC) under Baltimore's health department framework, meaning it receives federal funding tied to serving low-income populations and must accept Medicare, Medicaid, and uninsured patients. The OB/GYN department sits within a broader primary care facility, so patients can coordinate reproductive health with general medical services in one location. The clinic is staffed by licensed midwives and physicians; prenatal and postpartum care, annual gynecologic exams, and family planning are core offerings. The clinic does not perform surgical procedures like hysterectomy or myomectomy on-site; those are referred to hospital partners.

Services and sliding-scale fee structure

Annual gynecologic exam and Pap smear: $0 to $100 depending on income (most uninsured patients pay $0 to $35).

Prenatal visits (package for full pregnancy care): $0 to $300 total across all visits for patients below 200% of federal poverty level; uninsured patients above that threshold typically pay $40 to $80 per visit (confirm current rates by calling the clinic directly at the East Biddle location).

Birth control counseling and provision: IUD insertion and oral contraceptives are available; cost is scaled by income and ranges from $0 to $75 for an IUD, $0 to $15 per month for pills.

Postpartum visits: Usually included in prenatal package; standalone postpartum care is $0 to $50.

The sliding scale is applied at intake based on household size and income; patients may be asked to provide recent tax returns or pay stubs. No patient is turned away for inability to pay. Insurance is secondary to income-based fees, meaning even insured patients at lower incomes may pay the lower sliding-scale rate rather than a standard copay.

How Proyecto Salud compares to other Baltimore OB/GYN options

Proyecto Salud is one of three major federally qualified health centers in Baltimore offering OB/GYN services; the other two are Harbor Health and Charm City Health. All three operate on sliding scales, but eligibility and fee bands vary slightly. Harbor Health's OB/GYN department (multiple locations including West Baltimore) uses a similar 0-to-300% poverty-level scale and accepts walk-in prenatal visits on Wednesdays at its main site. Charm City Health (South and East Baltimore locations) emphasizes community health worker integration and postpartum mental health screening; it also operates on sliding scale but has longer average wait times for initial prenatal appointments (4 to 6 weeks versus Proyecto Salud's typical 2 to 3 weeks).

For insured patients seeking in-network OB/GYN care, private practices affiliated with University of Maryland Medical Center and Mercy Medical Center dominate Baltimore; these practices charge standard copays and deductibles but often have shorter routine-visit lead times. For uninsured patients, Proyecto Salud and Harbor Health are comparable choices; Proyecto Salud is preferable if proximity to East Baltimore is important, or if you prefer a single-site clinic model (Harbor Health requires navigation between multiple locations). Choose a private practice if you have insurance with a low deductible and want continuity with a single physician for labor and delivery; choose Proyecto Salud if cost is a primary concern, you are uninsured or underinsured, or you value integrated primary care under one roof.

Who this clinic suits and who it does not suit

Proyecto Salud is well-suited for uninsured Baltimore residents, Medicaid beneficiaries, and patients earning under 300% of federal poverty level (about $65,000 for a family of three). Pregnant patients seeking comprehensive prenatal care without high out-of-pocket cost, and those interested in midwife-attended births as an option, benefit from the clinic's model. Patients with complex medical conditions complicating pregnancy may find the clinic less ideal because it refers high-risk obstetric cases to hospital-based maternal-fetal medicine specialists; if you have a history of preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, or other complications, you may be referred to University of Maryland or Mercy for concurrent specialist care, which can fragment your care team.

The clinic is not appropriate for patients seeking elective cosmetic gynecologic procedures (labiaplasty, vaginoplasty), which are not offered. It is also not well-suited to patients prioritizing a private delivery experience; labor and delivery occurs at hospital partners, not at Proyecto Salud itself. English is the primary clinical language, though Spanish-language staff are available; if you need interpreters for other languages, call ahead.

What the first visit involves

Call the clinic to schedule a prenatal or gynecologic intake appointment. If you are pregnant, bring a recent LMP date (last menstrual period). Bring photo ID, proof of income (recent pay stub or tax return), and any insurance card if you have one. The intake visit typically lasts 45 minutes to 1 hour. A nurse will take a detailed history including obstetric history, medications, allergies, and social history. A physician or certified midwife will then conduct a pelvic exam, order prenatal labs (blood type, STI screening, glucose screening if indicated), and urine testing. At the end of the visit, you will receive a due date (if pregnant), a written care plan, and instructions for the next appointment. The clinic provides paper records as well as a patient portal for viewing lab results and appointment scheduling. If you are a new patient to the clinic overall, a primary care intake may be scheduled separately before or alongside the OB/GYN visit.

Hours, parking, and logistics

Proyecto Salud Clinic operates Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with limited Saturday hours (8 a.m. to noon) for select services; call ahead to confirm Saturday availability for OB/GYN specifically, as staffing changes. The East Biddle Street location has street parking and a small adjacent lot; parking is free. Public transit access is available via MTA bus routes 3 and 7, both of which stop near the clinic. The clinic is located in East Baltimore near Johns Hopkins Hospital; if you require emergency obstetric care during off-hours, the clinic refers to University of Maryland Medical Center (Main Campus) or Mercy Medical Center (Downtown), both 10 to 15 minutes by car or ambulance.

Proyecto Salud fills a specific role for Baltimore's uninsured and low-income pregnant patients and provides gynecologic care embedded in primary health, which is uncommon in private practice settings in the city.