Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois distributes $1.5M to help Illinoisans impacted by COVID-19

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) today is announcing it has selected 75 organizations to receive funding as part of the BCBSIL COVID-19 Community Collaboration Fund.

BCBSIL launched the Fund less than a month ago with a short turnaround to quickly get the $20,000 grants into the hands of organizations that are providing critical services in the areas of access to health care, hunger and shelter.

“We’re providing community support to people most impacted by the emerging health, economic and social impacts of COVID-19,” said Steve Hamman, president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois. “We have a long history of supporting community organizations and know that people turn to local, trusted resources in times of need. We admire and support those who give so much of themselves for the benefit of others.”

The funding will increase the capacity of organizations statewide, including: Aurora Area Interfaith Food Pantry, Southern Illinois Coalition for the Homeless and Aunt Martha’s.

Of the 75 grant recipients, 25 represent and address each focus area: hunger, shelter and access to health care. See the full list in our newsroom.

The BCBSIL COVID-19 Community Collaboration Fund is just one of the ways BCBSIL is responding to the developing needs of community partners. We have:

Extended an additional 6 months of funding for our 2019/2020 grant recipients
Donated $1M to the Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund
Donated $500,000 to the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund
To learn more about how we are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic for our members, including helping to expand access in areas such as testing, treatment, pharmacy and telehealth related to COVID-19, please visit https://www.bcbsil.com/covid-19.html.