PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- G. Fred DiBona, Jr., president and CEO of Independence Blue Cross, has been named the recipient of two prestigious awards for his support of important public health initiatives.
On Thursday night, October 14, the Philadelphia Health Management Corporation (PHMC) presented DiBona with the Carl Moore Leadership Award for his leadership and advocacy of better public health through IBC’s Charitable Medical Care Grant and Nurse Scholars Programs. The award was presented at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.
The next day, Friday, October 15, the National Nursing Centers Consortium (NNCC) honored DiBona with its annual Public Health Award. The award, which cites DiBona for his work on behalf of nurses, nursing education and nurse- managed care centers, was presented during the NNCC’s annual convention in Nashville, TN.
DiBona said the two initiatives represented extensions of IBC’s Social Mission, which is responsible for providing health insurance to some 150,000 Pennsylvania residents who otherwise would be uninsured.
“Both the Nurse Scholars Program and the Charitable Medical Care Program are aimed at improving the overall health of our community,” DiBona said. “Unless more nurses enter our health care system, we will have a health care crisis of grave proportions in the years to come. And supporting the work of our charitable health clinics not only increases access to health care for the uninsured, but it also reduces the amount of uncompensated care provided by hospitals and physicians -- a cost that our entire community is paying for in higher health insurance rates.”
The IBC Nurse Scholars Program represents a 3-year, $3 million commitment from IBC and the Pennsylvania Higher Education Foundation (PHEF) to address the region’s shortage of nurses by increasing the number of nursing educators and practicing nurses.
This year, 29 area colleges and universities have received grants from the program and have awarded scholarships to approximately 575 graduate and undergraduate students. Over the next three years, IBC will contribute $1.74 million and PHEF is contributing $510,000 to the Scholars Program. IBC also committed an additional $750,000 over the next three years to PHEF’s Nursing Education Initiative in Southeastern Pennsylvania, which provides financial assistance to aspiring undergraduate nursing students.
The IBC Charitable Medical Care Grant Program offers financial support to clinics that provide free or nominal-fee care to uninsured residents who otherwise would not have access to health care. To date, IBC has dedicated $2.7 million over the next three years to 13 facilities in Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester and Montgomery counties.
In remarks prepared for the NNCC award ceremony, Tine Hansen-Turton, Executive Director of the NNCC, praised the IBC initiatives.
“There is a lesson here for all of us,” she said. “Partnerships between nurse-managed health centers and private insurers can happen, and we hope that some of you will be inspired by this success story to work with your local Blue Cross plan and to share with them what Fred did and his vision.”
It was just over 18 months ago that IBC began discussions aimed at having an impact on two important public health issues -- the nursing shortage and the delivery of healthcare at the region’s charitable medical care clinics.
“But we were not sure how to help,” DiBona said. “So we asked the people who knew the issues best.
“We asked nurses and nurse educators how to address the shortage, and we were surprised at the answer: Help us get more nursing teachers, they said. We are turning away applicants to our nursing schools because we don’t have enough teachers. So we started the IBC Nurse Scholars program -- and so far more than 575 undergraduate and graduate students in Southeastern Pennsylvania have received grants this year.
“Then we asked the professionals who run charitable clinics how we could help, and they told us they needed financial support to sustain their operations. Many of them said they did not know how much longer they could stay open.
“They asked for resources -- without roadblocks. And we’re trying to make that happen.”
Independence Blue Cross is the leading health insurer in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Nationwide, IBC and its affiliates provide coverage to nearly 3.5 million people.
Independence Blue Cross
CONTACT: Butch Ward, Independence Blue Cross, +1-215-241-2220