Becton, Dickinson & Co., Direct Relief and the National Association of Community Health Centers recently awarded five community health centers with a total of $1 million in grant funding.
The funding, which is part of the BD Helping Build Healthy Communities program, will be used to expand medication management programs for vulnerable patients. The initiative provides awards to eligible community health centers to support innovative approaches to health care for underserved populations.
IN 2018, BD has invested a total of $1 million in the program by issuing $200,000 grants to each of the five community health center winners.
“Community health centers play an integral role in providing quality care to underinsured and uninsured patients who may not otherwise have access to health care,” said Vincent A. Forlenza, chairman and CEO of BD. “Community health centers understand the unique needs of the patients they serve and are already developing innovative care models to meet those needs. The goal of this funding is to help health centers expand their innovative care models to reach an even broader population of patients.”
The following are the winners, which were chosen from a pool of 50.
- Baldwin Family Health Centers, Baldwin, Michigan;
- Consejo de Salud de Puerto Rico, Ponce, Puerto Rico;
- The Dimock Center, Roxbury, Massachusetts;
- Queens Care Health Centers, Los Angeles, California;
- Santa Rosa Community Health, Santa Rosa, California;
“As we celebrate the mission and accomplishments of health centers, we are also grateful for our partnership with Direct Relief and BD,” said Malvise A. Scott, senior vice president for partnership and resource development at NACHC. “Collaborations like these help amplify and expand the groundbreaking work of health centers in reducing chronic disease and promoting wellness in some of America’s most challenged communities.”
Since launching the BD program in 2013, $4.6 million in grants have been provided to 36 health centers in 19 states.
“Each year, more than 28 million Americans receive care at health centers, where the country’s most vulnerable patients access care that otherwise wouldn’t be available,” said Thomas Tighe, CEO and president of Direct Relief. “Direct Relief applauds BD and NACHC’s pledge to bolster innovative solutions to patient care.”
