A $90 Million Boost for Health Equity: How Elevance Health Foundation’s Investment Supported Communities to Improve Whole Health

“Socioeconomic and other external factors overwhelmingly influence our health, and it’s our goal to strengthen healthcare resources for those who need it most,” said Dr. Shantanu Agrawal, chief health officer at Elevance Health. “By targeting the Foundation’s key focus areas, we’ve been able to support communities, increase access to healthcare, and deepen the nation’s collective understanding of the social drivers that influence much of our overall health.”
 

Improving Maternal Health

Working toward better maternal and infant health outcomes, Elevance Health Foundation allocated $30 million to 46 maternal health programs to reduce rates of pre-term birth, primary c-sections, and maternal morbidity and mortality. A pre-term birthrate of 9.5% for people participating in the program was better than the national average of 10.4%.

CHC: Creating Healthier Communities, supported by a $7 million grant, launched the Black Birthing Initiative (BBI) in 2022, to address health disparities for Black women who are pregnant in Atlanta, Cleveland, and Detroit.

BBI provides non-clinical support to address racism, stress, and social drivers such as housing instability, food insecurity, and mental health conditions, which can impact birth outcomes, including pre-term birth. Since January 2022, BBI has achieved a full-term birth rate of 90%, as compared to the 54% national average for the same population. CHC also developed a groundbreaking screening tool designed specifically to support pregnant Black women and identify their unmet health-related social needs. The BBI partners with CBOs to provide prenatal education, birth planning, doula and advocacy training, social support, and other relevant interventions.

“The grant enabled us to focus on factors that have an impact on the start of life,” said Valerie Rochester, chief equity and impact officer at CHC. “Leveraging our expertise and our collaborative partnerships, we were able to collectively address some of the root causes of the disparities that we're seeing in the maternal health space, and work with communities to help find solutions for the specific needs they were seeing.”
 

Reducing Substance Use Disorder

The Foundation allocated more than $30 million to 77 programs with a focus on substance use disorder (SUD), prevention and early intervention, treatment, and community support and recovery. To date, the Foundation’s SUD grantees have reached nearly 350,000 individuals with treatment-related programs.

Nonetheless, the stigma associated with SUD persists, even among healthcare professionals. Shatterproof works to mitigate the addiction health crisis. The organization’s research into public perceptions about SUD revealed that 65% of healthcare professionals falsely believe it is not a chronic disease.

“Stigma is one of the primary drivers of the overdose crisis,” said Courtney McKeon, senior vice president of the Shatterproof National Stigma Initiative. “It really does prevent people from seeking out treatment, from talking to a trusted friend. In order for there to be a turning point in our country around the addiction crisis, effectively addressing stigma needs to continue to be a part of the conversation.”

With support from a $5.4 million Foundation grant, Shatterproof created an online training course for healthcare professionals. The curriculum will dispel myths and misunderstandings about SUD, and promote person-centered, culturally responsive care. The program's effectiveness will be established through pre- and post-course evaluations to measure changes in knowledge, confidence, and attitudes towards SUD. This feedback will help refine the curriculum.
 

Encouraging Food as Medicine

The Foundation committed $30 million to 51 programs that reduce food insecurity and promote the value of food as medicine. To date, these initiatives have reached 690,000 individuals, with 68% of participants reporting overall improved health.

In the newest phase of its partnership with Feeding America®, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, a $14.1 million grant will fund the food as medicine (FAM) program through 2025, with emphasis on evaluations and leveraging data to strengthen collaborations between Feeding America partner food banks and healthcare providers. During healthcare appointments, these providers conduct specific screenings and direct their patients who screen positive for food insecurity to food assistance resources, including community-based food pantries.

Feeding America started FAM3.0, an extensive evaluation program conducted via a third party, to monitor and gather data on the program's implementation among food banks and healthcare partners. By focusing on these metrics, participating food banks can better ensure its programs are effectively reducing food insecurity and improving overall health outcomes.

“On a quarterly basis, we want to understand more about how many people are moving through these programs, what does that referral mechanism look like, and how many people are getting connected to food?” said Elise August, director of health systems innovation at Feeding America. “So, it’s a really important goal for us to understand the reach and the impact on our neighbors’ health outcomes.”
 

Helping Communities Prepare for and Respond to Crises

With $3.6 million in grants, the Foundation strengthened the efforts of 12 programs that help communities prepare for and respond to crises, such as natural disasters. This support ensures resources are used efficiently and locally and helps secure immediate and ongoing relief to help survivors and their communities recover in times of crisis.

Elevance Health and Elevance Health Foundation proudly support the vital work being done in the communities we serve to address social drivers of health and promote health equity; we look forward to bolstering this commitment in the future.