Tufts Health Plan Foundation board approves additional funding for organizations responding to coronavirus

WATERTOWN, MA – Tufts Health Plan Foundation board approved an additional $900,000 to support recovery and rebuilding efforts addressing the effects of the coronavirus pandemic in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Connecticut. The Foundation’s commitment to COVID-19 response now reaches nearly $2 million.

“Even as we grapple with the effects of the virus, we must consider future implications,” said Tom Croswell, president and CEO of Tufts Health Plan. “This crisis draws attention to deeply rooted systemic health disparities. This additional funding will support nonprofit organizations in their work to address the health and wellbeing of people in communities across the region.”

The Foundation also announced 13 new grants, totaling $1.7 million for support of collaborative community efforts and systems change to advance healthy aging.

“We need to learn from this experience,” said Nora Moreno Cargie, president of Tufts Health Plan Foundation and vice president for corporate citizenship at Tufts Health Plan. “We have an opportunity to think differently about how our systems are addressing community needs and how we can change the conditions that hold problems in place.”

The new grants go to:

• Cheshire Medical Center (Keene, N.H.)
  Three-year grant for $185,000
  Supports coordination activities for broadband connectivity; aligns Covid-19 responses with Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) effort; and supports integration of age-friendly planning with activities around housing, economic opportunity and Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Cheshire Medical Center is the fiscal agent for the Leadership Council for a Healthy Monadnock.
• Connecticut Community Care (Bristol, Conn.)
  Three-year grant for $150,000
  Supports the creation of a statewide community-driven Age Well Collaborative promoting livable/age-friendly communities, healthy aging, advocacy and age-positive messaging. Connecticut Community Care is serving as the fiscal agent.
• Ethos (Southwest Boston Senior Services, Inc.) (Jamaica Plain, Mass.)
  Two-year grant for $80,000
  Makes technology and virtual programming accessible for older adults to reduce isolation; provides internet access and training to older people with modest incomes.
• FSG (Boston, Mass.)
  One-year grant for $100,000
  Examines how service/response adaptations in response to COVID-19 can contribute to more inclusive and equitable age-friendly practices. This research is a collaboration with the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs and the Massachusetts Healthy Aging Collaborative.
• Greater Seacoast Community Health (Somersworth, N.H.)
  Two-year grant for $120,000
  Develops a regional age-friendly plan for all of Strafford County and nearby towns in Rockingham and Carroll Counties.
• Harvard University Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation (Cambridge, Mass.)
  Two-year grant for $110,000
  Creates a statewide inventory of nutrition programs specifically for older people to make it easier for health care providers, payers and social service agencies to connect eligible patients to Food is Medicine services.
• Healthy Waltham (Waltham, Mass.)
  Two-year grant for $100,000
  Expands Waltham Connections’ Senior Pantries to additional Housing Authority sites; increases communications around opportunities that address social isolation; and adapts the Waltham Senior Civic Academy curriculum to a virtual format. Healthy Waltham is the lead agency and fiscal sponsor for Waltham Connections.
• ONE Neighborhood Builders (Providence, R.I.)
  Two-year grant for $100,000
  Develops new design, financing mechanisms and community development options to increase the supply of accessible, affordable housing for diverse older adults.
• Pioneer Valley Regional Ventures Center (Springfield, Mass.)
  Three-year grant for $195,000
  Convenes a Pioneer Valley Age-Friendly Collaborative to engage member communities in planning for an aging population. Pioneer Valley Regional Ventures Center supports the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission.
• The Mental Health Center of Greater Manchester Inc. (Manchester, N.H.)
  Three-year grant for $165,000
  Establishes a citywide collaborative focused on connecting and expanding access to mental health services for older adults.
• The Open Door (Gloucester, Mass.)
  One-year grant for $85,000
  Supports the rollout of a Medically Tailored Groceries program for low-income older adult clients with chronic health conditions.
• Trust for America’s Health (Washington, D.C.)
  One-year grant for $50,000
  Engages state public health and aging leaders across the New England region in a practitioners’ community to learn about and grow age-friendly efforts.
• University of Massachusetts Foundation (Lowell, Mass.)
  Three-year grant for $300,000
  Creates a citywide age-friendly initiative building community capacity to develop and implement action and evaluation plans that promote health, independence and quality of life for older residents in Lowell. The University of Massachusetts Foundation is the fiscal agent for the University of Massachusetts, Lowell.

The Foundation continues a two-for-one match for donations by Tufts Health Plan employees and board members to organizations addressing the coronavirus pandemic. This match now is expanded and includes donations to nonprofits working on anti-racism and social justice efforts. Since March, more than $245,000 has been contributed to community organizations.