PITTSBURGH, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Highmark Inc. announced today that it will donate $500,000 to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana to help members deal with the Hurricane Katrina disaster.
"We recognize that this is one of the worst disasters in the nation's history," said Kenneth R. Melani, MD, president and CEO of Highmark. "Through Highmark's donation to this effort, we will help our partner plan in Louisiana and some 30,000 of our members in the area that may be affected by the hurricane."
The initial donation of $500,000 will be immediate. In addition, over the next few weeks, Highmark is also launching a dollar-for-dollar matching donation campaign with its 11,000 employees. The contributions will be distributed to local American Red Cross chapters across the state where employees are located to assist with the local disaster relief fund.
Highmark conducted a similar campaign in January for victims of the tsunami in South Asia. The total donation to local Red Cross chapters was $230,000.
As part of its social mission, Highmark works throughout the year with many human service agencies across the Commonwealth. Highmark will continue to assist these agencies as they work directly with disaster victims to recover from the devastating effects of this storm.
Highmark is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.
Highmark Inc.CONTACT: Leilyn Perri, +1-717-302-4243, or Kristin Ash, +1-412-544-8971,both of Highmark Inc.
