WOONSOCKET, R.I. — As part of an ongoing commitment to building healthier communities, CVS Health and its Foundation Thursday announced $2.9 million in grants to the National Association of Free & Charitable Clinics (NAFC) and their members. The new funding will support approximately 130 Free & Charitable Clinics in their efforts to help patients manage chronic disease, provide more wraparound services to address the social determinants of health and support treatment and prevention of substance abuse, including opioid and tobacco.

“We believe the support we provide in local communities is extending our purpose of helping people on their path to better health,” said Eileen Howard Boone, president of the CVS Health Foundation, “By helping to empower health care professionals in local communities through our support of the National Association of Free & Charitable Clinics, we’re helping Americans find access to the quality care they need and deserve to reduce health care costs for individuals and communities, as part of our commitment to healthier communities.”

The new funds bring the company and the CVS Health Foundation’s total contribution to NAFC to nearly $8 million since 2015. The grants will support increased access to quality care through substance abuse prevention, chronic disease management and assessing the social determinants of health, including:

• Heritage Community Clinic at Ohio University (Athens, Ohio) will utilize a $20,000 grant to address the social determinants of health in a clinical setting, deepening collaborating with public utility companies, housing assistance agencies, financial institutions and other organizations to increase public knowledge and awareness of resources in the local communities.
• Community Volunteers in Medicine (West Chester, Pa.) will receive a $20,000 grant to support its Non-Opioid Pain Management Program to provide quality, comprehensive and culturally competent care to the local uninsured population.
• A $20,000 grant to Ada Jenkins Families and Careers Development Center (Davidson, N.C.) will allow for the clinic to be open more frequently, providing additional and more convenient times for the community, including those that are chronically ill, to receive essential services.

Over 17,000 patients across America had access to needed health care in 2018 as a result of last year’s funding from the CVS Health Foundation. Two grantees alone saved their local hospitals $9.7 million by providing primary care to patients who would otherwise rely on the emergency room.

“On behalf of the medically underserved, we thank the CVS Health Foundation for its continued commitment to bringing care to those who have slipped through the cracks in our healthcare system,” said Nicole Lamoureux, president and chief executive officer of the NAFC. “The funding we received this year will help us increase access to quality care across the country addressing substance abuse, chronic diseases and social determinants of health. Taking on these root causes of poor health will help us create lasting change towards health equity in America.”

This year, grants will be distributed to Free and Charitable Clinics in California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and Washington, and range from $10,000 to $20,000 each.

For more information on how the Free and Charitable Clinics will be utilizing their grants to improve community health, please visit www.cvshealth.com/NAFC.