Investment, led by BlueCross BlueShield Venture Partners, will accelerate team growth, enhance new coordination product line, and support national expansion.

Collie Thomas is an orderly at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Each day, she stocks patients’ rooms with supplies, transports patients, and delivers medical records. It’s not a glamorous job, but Collie plays an important role in helping the hospital run smoothly, and she is extremely grateful for the opportunity. Unlike many in our country, Collie has a steady source of income.

More than 50 years ago, the Surgeon General first reported that cigarette smoking was very bad for our health. At the time, 42% of Americans smoked. Even now that the percentage has dropped dramatically to less than 15%, smoking is still a deadly problem. 

The deleterious effects of smoking are well known, including the increased risk for heart disease, stroke, and lung cancer. Smoking causes 480,000 deaths annually, which is more deaths each year than the following causes combined: HIV, illegal drug use, alcohol use, motor vehicle injuries, and firearm-related incidents. 

Santana Hudson, a 3-year-old boy from a low-income family in the Midwest, suffers from chronic asthma. The normally active young boy stops like clockwork every four hours to sit down and inhale asthma medication. If a dose is missed, he likely will end up in a trip to the emergency room, which for him, are frequent. Santana lacks a primary care doctor, and like many other children, he is left with one option for treating severe asthma attacks—to call an ambulance.

Asthma impacts roughly one in 12 Americans. It’s so common that its severity is often underestimated. But for some, like Santana, asthma can be so debilitating that it interferes with daily activities and can lead to life-threatening attacks. While asthma affects all ethnic groups and levels of socio-economic status, it disproportionally impacts low-income, minority and inner city populations.

Loneliness has evolved from a favorite topic of angsty teens to a serious public health crisis. Long thought of as a temporary state of mind, loneliness--broadly defined as “the distress people feel when reality fails to meet their ideal of social relationships”--now outstrips obesity as a predictor of early death.

A significant gap in the health care system for one of the most vulnerable patient populations may be slowly closing. Thanks to innovative new programs, increased numbers of homeless men and women fighting fatal illnesses and chronic conditions are receiving the palliative and respite care they so desperately need. 

With many seriously ill homeless patients seeking care only when in dire need, these vital programs work to improve quality of life, preserve the dignity of the patients, and help to better utilize already stretched health care resources.

When you think of the costliest chronic health conditions, diseases such as cancer, diabetes and heart disease come to mind. However, topping the list is a disease that unfortunately has long had a stigma associated with it—mental disorders.

While many eagerly anticipate the winter holidays, others dread the season as it brings more stress than joy.

Middle schoolers are now just as likely to die from suicide as from traffic accidents, according to newly published data from the Centers for Disease Control.

If health systems, payers, and providers aim to positively impact social determinants of health, it is imperative they recognize the cultural differences in caring for minority populations. Nationwide, people of color represent 38% of all Americans, and yet these groups are overrepresented in the low-income and underinsured populations.