Optum, Wider Circle & Helping Hands Community Partner to Deliver Free, Fresh Food to Vulnerable People in Los Angeles County ...
June 25 2020 - 7:19PM
Business Wire
Collaboration offers more than 60,000 Optum
patients in Los Angeles County food and delivery service to combat
food insecurity.
Optum, a leading health services company, and Wider Circle, a
tech-enabled community-based health care services company that
drives better health for older adults and other vulnerable
communities, have partnered with Helping Hands Community (HHC) to
launch the “Community Food Circle” initiative to bring food to
thousands of Optum patients in Los Angeles County during the
COVID-19 pandemic. The initiative supports Optum’s goal of helping
people reach their health and well-being goals, including
addressing social determinants of health.
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According to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health,
more than half a million households face barriers accessing
nutritional foods. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated
the problem. Even as some restrictions are lifted, older adults —
especially those with chronic conditions — may still choose to
avoid places with groups of people such as grocery stores. They may
also lack transportation. The “Community Food Circle” initiative
connects food donations and delivery to people in need.
“Our goal through this collaboration is to get food to people
who are in urgent need,” said Jaime Ramos, M.D., regional medical
director for Optum California. “Food security and health are so
intertwined. Together with partners who share our commitment, we’re
working to address this issue and build healthier communities.”
During today’s event, Optum volunteers from its AppleCare and
HealthCare Partners physician groups, Wider Circle staff,
volunteers from HHC and other community partners, packed and loaded
food supplies into Uber vehicles. Uber drivers then delivered the
food to Optum patients across Los Angeles County. HHC provides a
tech-enabled platform that connects businesses and nonprofits who
want to help, with local residents in need to create seamless,
organized volunteer efforts.
“Helping Hands Community is thrilled to work with Optum and
Wider Circle to bring our technology, volunteers and partnership
with Uber to help facilitate and scale this massive delivery
effort,” said Jeff Miller, CEO and co-founder of HHC. “With
shelter-in-place orders lifting, the virus still presents a
significant risk to the many LA residents vulnerable to COVID-19.
HHC will continue to partner with nonprofit and corporate
organizations to enable scalable delivery solutions to those in
need.”
Since the beginning of California’s shelter-in-place order,
Optum and Wider Circle have offered social support and meal
delivery services free of charge to more than 20,000 Optum patients
in Los Angeles County. Today’s partnerships with HHC expands the
meal delivery service by offering it to an additional 60,000 Optum
patients. Each food package provides an individual 10 days of
food.
“Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Wider Circle has partnered
with Optum to facilitate social support services like peer-to-peer
phone calls, meal delivery and virtual support groups that have
been especially critical for seniors and other vulnerable
populations,” said Darin Buxbaum, president and chief operating
officer of Wider Circle. “Collaborating with Uber and Helping Hands
Community allows us to further expand our efforts to alleviate food
insecurity for thousands of seniors during this challenging
time.”
About Optum California
Optum California is an integrated health system that serves more
than 1.4 million patients across Southern California through its
family of medical groups and provider networks, including OptumCare
Medical Group, HealthCare Partners, AppleCare Medical Group,
Monarch HealthCare and North American Medical Management of
California. More information is at www.optum.com.
About Wider Circle
Wider Circle works with health plans nationally to deliver
unique community care programs that connect neighbors for better
health. Centered on trusted relationships, Wider Circle connects
health plan members with familiar neighbors to inform, support and
motivate one another, empowering them to be more proactive about
their health. Wider Circle’s trusted delivery network has been
proven to drive resilience, improve member experience and
engagement, and reduce hospitalizations. Today, Wider Circle offers
its unique neighborhood care programs to more than 135 communities
nationwide, including specialized COVID-19 support for vulnerable
populations in isolation via virtual programming and peer-to-peer
community support.
About Helping Hands Community
Helping Hands Community is a nonprofit organization dedicated to
serving those most vulnerable to COVID-19: senior citizens, the
immunocompromised, and people with pre-existing medical conditions
which put them at additional risk. Our community of volunteers
deliver groceries, medicine, and other necessary supplies, and our
local and national partners help us identify and reach those in
need wherever they may be. The Helping Hands Community platform
makes community volunteerism easy and reliable, while providing a
tech-enabled solution for partners to scale their impact. Founded
by veterans of Uber, Facebook, and Google and students beginning
their careers, the Helping Hands Community comprises more than 150
volunteers from around the world.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200625005929/en/
Brad Lotterman 714-445-0453 brad.lotterman@optum.com
Wider Circle Jessy Green 917-689-9295 Jessy.green@svmpr.com
Helping Hands Community Lauren Volkmann 831-331-3307
lauren@helpinghands.community
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