The Independence Blue Cross Foundation celebrated its fifth anniversary at its headquarters at 1901 Market Street with nearly 200 of its valued partners and other special guests. To mark the occasion, the Foundation recognized the support of many individuals and organizations that have contributed to its extraordinary accomplishments.
Since its launch in October 2011, the Foundation has invested more than $25 million in initiatives that target four primary areas:
- Increasing access to quality, affordable care in medically underserved areas;
- Bolstering the nursing workforce;
- Addressing national health issues; and
- Building healthier communities.
The Foundation’s work has:
- Provided Blue Safety Net grants to 44 privately funded, nonprofit community health centers that help more than 200,000 individuals in underserved communities across southeastern Pennsylvania;
- Funded grants to 21 nursing schools for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral scholarships, as well as undergraduate student nurse internships and a new Nurse Practitioner Residency Program. The Foundation is also the inaugural funder of the Robert Wood Johnson Future of Nursing Scholars program. Last November, the Foundation partnered with the National League for Nursing to host “Paradigms in Nursing Leadership,” a national conference which drew more than 500 nursing professionals to discuss the evolving role of nurses in today’s fast-changing health care environment;
- Created Healthy Futures, a three-year collaborative school-based program with local partners to empower healthy habits among students and their families, and hosted a regional conference on childhood obesity;
- Launched the STOP (Supporting Treatment and Overdose Prevention) initiative in response to the nation’s opioid epidemic;
- Produced the multi-award winning Journal of Change magazine and was named Outstanding Corporate Foundation by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Greater Philadelphia Chapter.