HEALTH NEW ENGLAND AWARDS $150,000 TO THREE LOCAL NON-PROFITS FOR COMMUNITY HEALTH INITIATIVES
Posted on November 2, 2023
SPRINGFIELD, MA – (November 2, 2023) – Health New England has awarded three local non-profit organizations $50,000 each in support of programs to improve the health and well-being of at-risk community members in Western Massachusetts. The “Where Health Matters” grants will help provide services to people of color who are pregnant or are new parents; to immigrants and refugees; and to people needing help leveraging supplemental benefits for healthier foods.
As part of Health New England’s Community Benefits program, the Where Health Matters grant program focuses on projects that address the built environment (food insecurity, housing needs, safe places to play, transportation), maternal and infant health, and mental health and/or substance use.
“With our Where Health Matters grants, Health New England is honored to support three organizations that have demonstrated innovation in addressing health inequity in communities with fewer resources,” said Richard Swift, president and CEO of Health New England. “Their hard work will help address some of the most pressing health needs in Western Massachusetts. Supporting these programs is part of our duty and mission as your local health plan to invest in our communities, and we are happy to do so.”
The following organizations are Health New England’s 2023 Where Health Matters grant recipients:
Berkshire Nursing Families: Better Black Birthing in the Berkshires
Berkshire Nursing Families will work with leaders of color to form a coalition to support ongoing resources for Black people who are pregnant or are new parents. As these connections are made, Berkshire Nursing Families will collaborate with Springfield Family Doula Services to bring new, Black-led culturally competent perinatal services to Berkshire County. Berkshire Nursing Families will offer free lactation consultations, and Springfield Doula Services will offer Doula Care Packages to pregnant and post-partum Black women/birthing people. The program will also include educational workshops and peer group meetings.
Volunteers in Medicine Berkshires: Training for Trauma-Informed Care and Building a Medical/Legal/Behavioral Health Care Model
This new program will focus on meeting the medical needs of the growing immigrant/refugee population while helping support their legal pathways. Volunteers in Medicine has witnessed an increase in the number of immigrants and refugees in need of care, many of whom have suffered extreme trauma before coming to the United States. The project will create collaboration among legal, behavioral health experts, clinicians and community health workers to better serve the unique needs of this population.
Gardening The Community: Use HIP, Get Healthy
This grant will support the hiring of an outreach manager to teach 1,000 people who use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) how to use their Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) benefits to get healthy foods. Gardening the Community will focus its efforts on the most underserved areas of Springfield, Holyoke and West Springfield.
Health New England, a Baystate Health-owned not-for-profit health plan, continues to invest in the health and well-being of the people in the communities it serves. In its fifth year, Health New England’s Where Health Matters grants have provided more than $1.2 million in funding to non-profits in Western and Central Massachusetts.
About Health New England
Based in Springfield, Massachusetts, Health New England is a not-for-profit health plan serving members in Massachusetts and Connecticut. A wholly owned subsidiary of Baystate Health, Health New England offers a range of health care plans in the commercial, Medicaid and Medicare markets. For more information, visit healthnewengland.org.
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