CHAPEL HILL, N.C.– The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation has invested $692,183 in 14 organizations through grants to support programs designed to improve the health of vulnerable populations and promote physical activity and nutrition.
 
“We believe that by supporting the work of these groups, we are continuing to partner with organizations, programs and people capable of furthering our mission of improving the health and well-being of North Carolinians,” said Kathy Higgins, president of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation.
 
The 14 grants include:
  • $73,000 to Pungo District Hospital in Beaufort County for the expansion of a diabetes program to develop individual care plans for 200 medically underserved individuals in Beaufort and Hyde counties who have been diagnosed with diabetes or pre-diabetes.
  • $63,000 to the Buncombe County Medical Society Foundation to expand the network of trained interpreters, providing scheduling services and conducting education outreach to Buncombe County health care providers on the importance of interpreter services.  
  • $55,000 to Planned Parenthood Health Services in Mecklenburg County to provide affordable, accessible and culturally appropriate preventive reproductive health care to underserved and uninsured Latinos in the Charlotte area.
  • $40,000 to Betsy Johnson Regional Hospital in Dunn to expand free prescription drug services and medication management programs to uninsured patients living in Harnett, Johnston and Sampson counties.
  • $25,000 to Wake Health Services – a nonprofit, federally qualified health center – to implement electronic medical records in order to improve the quality of care and health outcomes for 17,000 people in Wake and Franklin counties.
  • $126,000 two-year grant to the North Carolina Alliance for Athletics, Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance in Raleigh to support the expansion of its In-School Prevention of Obesity and Disease program through the addition of evidence-based physical activity and nutrition curriculum.
  • $100,000 to Child Care Services Association in Chapel Hill for a two-year grant to support the Early Nutrition Matters Program which is designed to increase access to highly nutritious meals for children in child care centers in Durham, Orange and Wake counties. 
  • $72,170 to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington to expand their Weight Wise Program, an evidence-based physical activity and nutrition program focusing on reaching minority women in faith settings.
  • $60,000 to Cape Fear Valley Medical Foundation to institute Follow Our Footsteps, a faith-based physical activity and nutrition intervention designed to improve health literacy, develop a network of lay health advisors, and facilitate policy and practice changes within the church related to nutrition and physical activity.
  • $58,013 to East Carolina University to support the establishment of church-based centers for healthy living incorporating nutrition education, physical activity, and policy changes at participating churches.  
  • $5,000 to Cabarrus Health Alliance to provide exercise equipment to be used by trained community health advocates to teach weekly physical activity classes in churches in Cabarrus, Rowan and Mecklenburg counties.
  • $5,000 to The Cornerstone Ministry in Pitt County to provide treadmills and other exercise equipment to support a faith-based program designed to increase physical activity within the church environment.
  • $5,000 to Presbyterian Home for Children of Black Mountain to provide fitness stations as part of a fitness trail to encourage physical activity among the abandoned, abused and neglected children ages 5-18 that are served by the home.
  • $5,000 to the YWCA of the Central Carolinas to provide sports and exercise equipment for their Youth Development Program, which serves children ages 5-15 living in or near the 12 low-income communities where the program’s sites are located.
 
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield Foundation Foundation:
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina Foundation (BCBSNC Foundation) is a private, separate, independent, charitable foundation with the mission of improving the health and well being of North Carolinians. Its focus is improving the health of vulnerable populations, supporting physical activity and nutrition programs, and helping nonprofit groups improve their organizational capacity. The BCBSNC Foundation funds programs and services in response to grant requests and proactively creates initiatives and partners with organizations to address specific needs. It also coordinates several signature programs, among them, the Breast Health Project and Healthy Community Institute for Nonprofit Excellence. Since its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than 220 grants totaling more than $32 million to organizations throughout North Carolina. More information is available at bcbsncfoundation.org
 
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