Another option for health care may be coming to serve the Belhaven and Pantego areas.

Michael McDuffie, executive director of Metropolitan Community Health Services Inc., said the organization applied for grant money to open a New Access Point in Belhaven — offering medical, dental and behavioral health care, as well as pharmacy services.

New Access Points are federally funded health care projects that target underserved populations, as well as low-income and uninsured populations. Metropolitan Community Health Services applied for the maximum grant amount of $650,000, according to McDuffie.

McDuffie said the organization had previously planned to open a New Access Point in the Belhaven area in 2012, but felt the time wasn’t right to do so. He said Belhaven is a good candidate for a site, especially after the controversial closure of Vidant Pungo Hospital in 2014.

“Times are a little better now,” McDuffie said. “Of course, we do see the uninsured population, the most vulnerable population.”

If Metropolitan is awarded the grant money, McDuffie said he has also discussed the possibility of working with Pungo Medical Center, the nonprofit created to head up Belhaven residents’ efforts to reopen its hospital, and potentially locate its New Access Point at the hospital if it reopens.

McDuffie said the site would also work with Vidant Health’s new multispecialty clinic in the town for patient referrals. The site would also serve patients from Pantego.

If plans for the New Access Point move forward, Metropolitan estimates it would serve 1,850 new patients in the area by the end of 2018, according to a report presented to the Beaufort County commissioners.

McDuffie said he hopes to bring more affordable health care to Belhaven and Pantego, as well as provide better access for patients who may have experienced transportation barriers in the past. The closest Access Point sites are located in Washington and Williamston.

Metropolitan expects to hear back from the grant application later this year, he said.