health equity

GuideWell joins approximately 40 cross-sector health care organizations committing to collecting, stratifying, and reviewing data about race, ethnicity, language and sex across top metrics and sharing that information to inform best practices.

Oct. 26, 2021 — COVID-19 and the social injustice crises of 2020-2021 shined a new light on the systemic disparities in the U.S. health care system. Some disparities – such as with maternal and infant health – have been understood within the industry. But startling new research published last month found that Black children experience higher complication rates that White children after having their appendix removed, an indication that such inequities are more widespread than previously believed.

Everyone should have an equal opportunity to thrive in life no matter what zip code they reside in. But for people who live in places where economic and heatlh disparities are high, their chances of achieving optimal health and well-being diminish. That's why GuideWell is launching the Growing Resilient Communities statewide well-being challenge. The goal is to accelerate the development of place-based approaches focused on addressing economic disparities in underserved communities in Florida.

A South Florida organization dedicated to empowering student health ambassadors has taken top honors in a statewide innovation challenge to address health access and equality. Health Information Project (HIP) was awarded a $40,000 grand prize in the GuideWell Reshaping Health Access Challenge, a statewide competition focused on addressing health disparities in Florida.

Fourteen Florida organizations dedicated to improving health equity will face off in the GuideWell Reshaping Health Access Challenge virtual state finals on Wed., Oct. 28 for an opportunity to win a grand prize of $40,000 in funding to further their efforts to help achieve health access or health literacy in their respective community. The 14 finalists were selected after pitching their solutions to a panel of judges at one of four regional pitch events held virtually in mid-September.

GuideWell issued the statewide challenge to entrepreneurs, nonprofits, innovators and organizations to seek innovative ideas for improving health disparities – an issue that has long existed and that has become more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent civic unrest and racial tension across the country.

GuideWell today selected four organizations to receive seed money to implement their innovative ideas to address barriers to health access and health literacy in West Florida. Starting Right, Now, Tampa Family Health Centers, Tampa Bay Healthcare Collaborative and Preeclampsia Foundation were selected from a group of 10 regional innovators across West Florida to receive $5,000 in funding. In addition, they will advance to GuideWell’s Reshaping Health Access challenge finals where they’ll have the opportunity to compete for a $40,000 state grand prize. Funds will be used to address health and racial inequities that exist in their respective local communities.

The four innovative ideas from West Florida advancing to the finals include:

GuideWell has selected four South Florida organizations to receive seed money to implement their innovative ideas to address barriers to health access and health literacy. Student ACES, Epilepsy Florida, T. LeRoy Jefferson Medical Society, and the Health Information Project, Inc. (HIP) were selected from a group of 10 regional innovators across South Florida to receive $5,000 in funding. In addition, they will advance to GuideWell’s Reshaping Health Access challenge finals where they’ll have the opportunity to compete for a $40,000 state grand prize. Funds will be used to address health and racial inequities that exist in their respective local communities. The groups were selected after a virtual pitch competition that was held on Friday, September 18.

GuideWell Mutual Holding Corporation (GuideWell), the parent to a family of forward-thinking companies focused on transforming health care; Florida Blue, the state’s leading health insurer; and Florida Blue Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Florida Blue, today announced $25 million in investments over five years to organizations focused on diversity and inclusion and health equity in the communities the organizations serve. The commitment coincided with the launch of the company’s Equity Alliance, an initiative focused on addressing systemic racism and resulting health disparities for Black Americans.

The new financial commitment builds upon the organizations’ existing contributions and programs to support economic, social and health causes in their communities. In 2019, the enterprise donated more than $1.2 million in grants to more than 80 Black and community development organizations.