The CVS Health Foundation announced Wednesday $1.5 million in funding for a new partnership with local organizations to provide free or low-cost health care services, medically tailored meals and transportation for residents of Atlanta. Much of the services will be focused on west Atlanta, an area of less access – and more barriers — to health care.
The money will fund an initiative called, “Atlanta Health Zones” and is in partnership with Good Samaritan Health Center (Good Sam), Open Hand Atlanta and Uber Health, designed to help improve health outcomes for patients especially for those with chronic health conditions including diabetes and high blood pressure. Good Sam will also provide mental health assessments.
“Today showcases the strength of how a more connected and coordinated use of resources between each of our local organizations makes an even greater impact,” said Andre Greenwood, interim CEO of Aetna Better Health of Georgia, a CVS Health company. “It is no secret that individual’s overall well-being is impacted by several key factors including access to health services, healthy food, transportation and medication management.”
The Atlanta Health Zones funding will allow Good Sam to provide enhanced clinic services that will include nurse navigators to help coordinate and tailor personalized patient treatment plans. The nurse navigators will help patients get free Uber rides for medical appointments. Good Sam can also connect patients to Open Hand Atlanta, which provides free meals that are medically tailored for a specific health condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure, and also provides free healthy cooking classes.
Credit: Helena Oliviero
Credit: Helena Oliviero
Good Sam, which is not a free clinic, provides services to patients who are uninsured or underinsured with low to moderate income on a sliding scale. The health center only sees patients with income no more than twice the federal poverty guideline for a household of a certain size.
CVS Health also announced a $150,000 grant for the Center for Black Women’s Wellness to expand health services, which include a recently launched doula program to provide pregnant women with physical and emotional support before, during and after the birth of a baby.
In some neighborhoods west of downtown Atlanta, residents face stressors such as a lack of access to health care and not being able to obtain necessities like food and medicine.
Research by the Atlanta Regional Commission shows, for example, residents in the Bankhead/English Avenue neighborhoods live an average age of 63.6 years, almost 24 fewer years compared to residents living in the Sandy Springs/Heards Creek neighborhoods, only 9 miles away. The life expectancy in area in northern Fulton County is 87.2 years on average.
Meanwhile, Atlanta continues to reel from the abrupt closure of the Atlanta Medical Center two years ago, which disrupted the city’s health care ecosystem.
But on Tuesday, city leaders and leaders of local organizations celebrated this new partnership. The funding will be spread out over three years.
“It’s about connectedness and us doing this work together,” said Jemea Dorsey, president and CEO of Center for Black Women’s Wellness at a press conference.
“Atlanta has so many amazing resources and yet we still have these persistent health disparities and inequities. But the glass being half full, look at these agencies coming together to ensure that we are a healthier city. And our goal should be to have optimal health for everybody regardless of insurance, and regardless of ability to pay.”
The CVS Health Foundation also highlighted successes over the past six months for the program, which started receiving some funding as of late last year:
- Of the 317 diabetic patients treated, 156 returned for a blood glucose follow up test, with 53% of them showing an improvement of controlling blood glucose levels.
- Of the 710 hypertensive participants seen, 632 have had a second blood pressure analysis, with 56% demonstrating an improvement in their blood pressure level.
- 13% of participants reported they skipped their medication in the last 30 days, an improvement from 36.4% at an earlier appointment.
Atlanta Health Zones began in 2022 but was more narrowly focused on seniors. In addition to CVS’ Atlanta Health Zone, the foundation has created four other Health Zones in the following cities: Columbus, Ohio, Fresno, Calif., Hartford, Conn., and Phoenix, Ariz.
Credit: Helena Olivie
Credit: Helena Olivie
Shannon Carter, who is 50 and lives in west Atlanta, shared after the press conference his own experience at getting care at Good Sam. He first sought help after being diagnosed with sarcoidosis, an inflammatory disease that can affect multiple organs in the body. He has since been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. He credits the care there for helping him manage both illnesses with medication as well as other programs including cooking classes and yoga classes.
“I feel so grateful and thankful,” he said. “My outlook on life is a lot more positive.”
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