Blue Cross Foundation Awards $4.2 Million in COVID-19 Response Grants

BATON ROUGE —Since mid-March, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation has granted more than $4 million to 95 nonprofits across the state working to meet the needs of communities in response to COVID-19.

Efforts supported through Foundation grant funding include:

• Providing food to kids, financially insecure families and seniors
• Supporting healthcare needs, including securing critical supplies for providers, connecting individuals to care and mental health resources
• Funding direct economic support , housing assistance and keeping families financially stable
• Sustaining essential services disproportionately affected by stay-at-home orders, such as sober housing, services for sexual assault victims and a limited scope of education-related services
• Supporting regional groups organizing disaster response in communities across Louisiana, and supporting nonprofits through community relief funds operated by local community foundations

“While we know this crisis is ongoing for so many, we are so proud of the dozens of nonprofits and thousands of volunteers who have stepped up in support of their communities,” said Michael Tipton, President of the Blue Cross Foundation. “Louisiana’s nonprofit sector is an essential part of our ongoing recovery, and we are thankful to play a part in their work.”

The Foundation plans to continue making grants to nonprofits as funds allow and as the need persists, Tipton added. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation board has made a total of $5 million available to date for COVID-19 disaster grant funding.

Tipton gives an update on grants awarded since March to support COVID-19 relief efforts and other Foundation activities in this video (2:11).

About Community Crisis and Disaster Response Grants
The Foundation has set up a grant fund of $5 million for nonprofits meeting the needs of Louisianians who have been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. The first $3.1 million has been awarded, but nonprofits are invited and encouraged to apply for the remaining grant fund. Qualifying work can include immediate needs like food, clothing, shelter, and meeting household expenses. Grants can also be used to meet more long-term needs such as ongoing patient education and care navigation, economic recovery efforts and more.

Community Crisis and Disaster Response are up to $50,000 and grants are made as general operating support – which means nonprofits can be flexible in their approach to solving problems for their communities.

The Foundation continues to process grant applications daily. The full request for proposals, as well as the application for the grant program are online at www.bcbslafoundation.org/disastergrants.

About the Blue Cross Foundation
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation works each day to improve the health and lives of Louisianians by empowering everyday people to do extraordinary good. By building and funding coalitions of friends, families and neighbors, the Foundation hopes to build a healthier Louisiana, particularly for its children. The Foundation is funded solely by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, but is a separate 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity. Together, Blue Cross and the Blue Cross Foundation invest $3.5 million each year into Louisiana’s communities and nonprofits.