Local Nonprofits Share $500K in Excellus BCBS Awards

Excellus BlueCross BlueShield recently announced the recipients of its Health Equity Innovation Awards, designed to support community programs and services that focus on combating racial and ethnic health disparities across Upstate New York, including two in the Utica-North Country region.

Last year, Excellus BCBS called on organizations to apply for grants that would fund initiatives, programs and research that confront the fundamental causes of health inequities, with an emphasis on the impact of structural racism. The health plan hopes the awards will help to enhance the physical and mental health of our communities, reduce social disparities in healthcare and promote equitable access to health services.

The funding, which totals more than $500,000, will benefit 19 nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations in the Rochester, Central New York-Southern Tier, and Utica-North Country regions. Recipients were chosen from an application pool of nearly 300 submissions based on their well-defined objectives and quantifiable results aimed at diminishing health disparities and advancing health equity.

Funding from the Excellus BCBS Health Equity Innovation Awards will support the following initiatives in the Utica-North Country region:

MV Resource Center for Refugees: Program will address the need to support behavioral mental health by providing access to a behavioral health navigator, offering free education and services to the local refugee population in the city of Utica.

Planned Parenthood of the North Country: Program will address the need for preventive healthcare for a high-risk, underserved population in a rural area by expanding services using innovative technology to connect patients with primary care services through outreach centers.

For the latest information on Excellus BlueCross BlueShield’s ’s community investments and partnerships, visit, ExcellusBCBS.com/community.