Huntington Health provides over $135.4 million in community benefits in 2021

As part of its non-profit mission, Huntington Health provides significant benefits to the communities it serves, often in the form of health education, outreach, and low or no-cost hospital care for the uninsured and those with limited means. Each May, Huntington Health submits the Annual Report and Plan for Community Benefit to the Department of Health Care Assessment and Information (HCAI). According to the 2021 report, last year the organization provided an estimated total of $135,422,899 worth of health care services and support to residents of the San Gabriel Valley and beyond.

 “Huntington Health is committed to the well-being of our community,” says Lori J. Morgan, MD, MBA, president and CEO, Huntington Health. “Although some of our annual programs and events were postponed last year due to the pandemic, we found new and innovative ways to provide support and care for our community members. Not only does the report show how we helped our friends and neighbors during an extraordinary time; it shows the great lengths we take – no matter the circumstances – to make our community strong and healthy.”        

These community benefits include charity care for those patients unable to pay, as well as care expenses underwritten by the hospital that reflect the differences between the actual cost of the care and the amount of money received for patients covered by Medicare and/or Medi-Cal.

Community benefits also support research, education and training, including clinical research, graduate medical education programs, scholarships, and continuing education in nursing and many other disciplines. Benefits are also directed to the community-at-large, such as seniors, breastfeeding mothers, vulnerable populations or the underserved, and those suffering from specific diseases (such as cancer and Type II diabetes).

In 2021, Huntington Health provided:

• 32,000 COVID-19 vaccines to over 16,000 people
• 2,440 free flu shots
• 148 people experiencing Type II diabetes with a six-week diabetes empowerment and education program and support group
• Over 840 community members with various support groups for cancer, mental health, weight management, stroke and more
• 560 health screenings
• 78 clients experiencing homelessness with RN support through the Pasadena Outreach Response Team (PORT)
• 1,096 patients identified as vulnerable with additional assistance, including post-discharge follow-up and as-needed assistance with care transitions
• 176 patients with discounted or free prescription medications upon discharge
• 663 Senior Care Network (SCN) community members with home-living safety support
• 2,884 callers with support through SCN
• 614 community members with education on senior health-care topics through SCN
• 16,322 callers with information through Ask a Nurse
• 1,517 people with transportation assistance through bus tokens and cab fare
• 5,748 blood products from 2,924 units of blood collected from community donors

Huntington Health also supported our current and future caregivers by providing health education and training programs for our internal medicine and general surgery residents, nurses, nursing students, and other health professionals, such as clinical lab, occupational therapy, outpatient rehab, pharmacy, physical therapy, radiology, respiratory services, social work, speech-language pathology and emergency services.

To review the complete 2021 community benefit report, please visit: https://bit.ly/3y6Dtcg