Center History

Riggs CHC has a rich 25-plus year history of providing high quality, comprehensive primary health care to the uninsured and under-insured men, women and children of Tippecanoe County, Indiana. It was Wendell Riggs, M.D. who envisioned increased access for the area's uninsured and under-insured children and their families. With support from St. Elizabeth Medical Center and a few dedicated community members who shared his zeal to help, he was able to provide affordable primary care for women and children by opening a part-time prenatal and well-child clinic in 1988. This was the beginning of access to vital health care services for the under-served in Greater Lafayette and the surrounding area.

From humble roots through what was then known as the Community Health Clinic under the County Health Department, Dr. Riggs and his colleagues served 240 patients in the Clinic's inaugural year. During the course of the following years, the clinic became known as the Tippecanoe Community Health Clinic, officially separated from County government, obtained status as a not-for-profit entity, became a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), and in 1998, opened its own 19,000-square foot facility made possible through a successful capital campaign, epitomizing an outstanding public/private partnership with the community.