Regence Foundation Announces Largest Set of Quarterly Grant Awards in Its History

PORTLAND, Ore., Nov. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- The Regence Foundation announced nearly $405,000 in grants to Northwest and Utah nonprofits - its largest set of quarterly grant awards since the Foundation launched early in 2008. The grants are to nonprofits working on key public health issues and breaking down barriers to care. The Foundation also awarded its first Sojourns palliative care grant.

"The Regence Foundation believes that access to quality, affordable care is the key to a healthy community," said Michael Alexander, Regence Foundation board chair. "As a Foundation that is part of a health insurance company, it's our responsibility and commitment to the community to support nonprofits working to get people the care they need and bringing attention to key health issues."

• Pacific University (Forest Grove, OR): $94,000 to open an Interdisciplinary Diabetes Clinic at the university's Health Professions Campus in Hillsboro. As a safety net clinic, it will be open to anyone with diabetes, but its focus will be on providing affordable care to Latinos with diabetes.
• Northeast Oregon Network (NEON) (La Grande, OR): $65,000 to extend the reach of its Covering Kids and Families Program. The program connects uninsured individuals and their families to health coverage. With this grant, NEON will help new enrollees find a primary care medical home. Currently, up to half of new enrollees do not have an existing relationship with a health care provider.
• Alliance Community Services (Salt Lake City, UT): $65,200 for educational seminars to encourage healthy lifestyles and promote the recognition of obesity as a major public health concern in the Utah Latino community. According to the Utah Health Department, about 66 percent of Latino adults in Utah are overweight.
• Doernbecher Children's Hospital Foundation (Portland, OR): $52,150 in support of the hospital's Bridges pediatric palliative care program. The grant will be used to survey pediatric palliative care training needs among community hospice nurses throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington and develop a pediatric hospice training curriculum and DVD. This is The Regence Foundation's first Sojourns palliative care grant.
• Washington Health Foundation (Seattle, WA): $48,500 for the Healthiest State Campaign to improve the health of 18-24 year old undergraduates in Washington State four-year colleges and universities. The grant is geared toward helping students learn how to access health care while enrolled in college and practice preventive health behaviors.
• Community Services Northwest (Vancouver, WA): $30,000 to hire a volunteer coordinator for its Wellness Project, the only free mental health clinic in the Northwest, and one of the few in the nation. Hiring a volunteer coordinator to recruit, train and supervise volunteer counselors will ultimately help the Wellness Project increase the number of clients it serves. Currently, it has a waiting list for care.
• Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital (Yakima, WA): $50,000 to hire bilingual health educators for "Tomando Control de su Salud," a chronic disease self management program for Spanish-speaking patients. Through educational workshops, the program helps Latinos with chronic diseases learn more about their condition and better manage their symptoms.
  

"In funding these seven projects, The Regence Foundation identified and partnered with innovative nonprofits who are tackling complex health care problems with resourceful methods," said Monique Barton, Regence Foundation executive director. "That's something we're proud to be a part of in our communities."

Several of these grants were awarded through The Regence Fund at The Oregon Community Foundation.

About The Regence Foundation
The Regence Foundation is the corporate foundation of Regence, the largest health insurer in the Northwest/Intermountain region and a nonprofit independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. A 501(c)3 grantmaking organization, the Foundation partners with organizations driving significant change in health care delivery and accessibility in Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Washington. Through its Sojourns program, the Foundation also supports organizations advancing quality palliative and end-of-life care. For more information, visit www.RegenceFoundation.org or www.twitter.com/RegenceGives.