HARTFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Two Oregon nonprofits each were awarded $25,000 in support from Aetna (NYSE: AET) to further their work in promoting healthy lifestyles and healthy eating. The Oregon Health and Science University Foundation and the Community Food Security Coalition, both based in Portland, received the funds to support 2011 programs.
“Aetna is pleased and proud to support nonprofit organizations here in Oregon that are working to make a difference on key health and wellness challenges we face in our communities, said Norm Seabrooks, Aetna’s local market president for Oregon.
The Oregon Health and Science University Foundation received a $25,000 grant to support its month-long activity challenge Get Going Oregon 2011. Kicked off on Saturday, July 23 with a health fair and 5k walk, the program engages teens and adults to use a web-based tracking tool to input their physical activities, such as swimming, biking, walking and wheelchair racing. Participants are encouraged to average 10,000 activity steps per day throughout the month of August. Now in its second year, Get Going Oregon aims to reduce the impact, incidence and prevalence of diabetes and obesity.
Aetna also bestowed $25,000 in funding to the Community Food Security Coalition to sponsor the first national conference devoted to examining local food policies. The conference, held on May 23, brought together several hundred healthy food advocates, elected officials, planners, and public sector staff to discuss how communities can implement policies at the state and local levels to improve the availability of nutritious, healthful and affordable food for its residents.
Nationwide during 2010, Aetna and its charitable giving arm the Aetna Foundation gave $15.6 million in grants and sponsorships. In addition, the Aetna employees, retirees and directors donated an additional $6.9 million through the company’s matching gift program, bringing combined giving in communities where Aetna employees and customers live and work to $22.5 million. And, Aetna’s employees donated more than dollars, generously giving nearly 335,000 hours of their personal time and talents in communities nationwide. Since 2003, Aetna employees have logged more than 2.3 million volunteer hours.
“During 2010, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation were pleased to provide grants and sponsorships to 661 nonprofit organizations nationwide, and to match the generosity of our employees to another 9,492 organizations within our communities,” said Anne C. Beal, M.D., M.P.H., Aetna Foundation president. “We also made significant progress toward our goals of concentrating our grants on specific health issues of national concern, giving nearly $2.35 million to the fight against obesity, $1.24 million to improve racial and ethnic equity in health and health care, and more than $1 million to support better integrated health care in America.”
More information about Aetna’s and the Aetna Foundation’s 2010 efforts to help improve the health of children and adults and to make our health care system more equitable and effective can be found online in the multi-media annual giving report Investing in Our Future.
About the Aetna Foundation
The Aetna Foundation, Inc. is the independent charitable and philanthropic arm of Aetna, Inc. Since 1980, Aetna and the Aetna Foundation have contributed $394 million in grants and sponsorships, including $15.6 million in 2010. As a national health foundation, we promote wellness, health, and access to high-quality health care for everyone. This work is enhanced by the time and commitment of Aetna employees, who have volunteered more than 2.3 million hours since 2003. Our current giving is focused on addressing the rising rate of adult and childhood obesity in the U.S.; promoting racial and ethnic equity in health and health care; and advancing integrated health care. For more information, visit www.AetnaFoundation.org.
About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation’s leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 36.5 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com.
CONTACT:
Aetna
Anjie Coplin, 214-200-8056
[email protected]
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