ORLANDO, Fla. — Hurricane Ian devastated Southwest Florida and many organizations around the state continue to provide relief to those communities still in need.
Last week, Florida Blue president and CEO Pat Geraghty announced that the state’s Blue Cross Blue Shield plan will donate an additional $1 million to support 22 local and regional organizations that continue to provide community-based hurricane relief efforts.
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This latest funding brings the total investment in hurricane relief efforts to $2 million.
“We are so grateful to the community leaders who have been working tirelessly to provide emergency items, food, housing and even health and mental health services to those severely impacted by Hurricane Ian,” said Geraghty. “There is a long road ahead to recovery from the devastation of this storm. Our mission of helping people and communities achieve better health requires us to continue to support our fellow Floridians and provide these communities with the relief needed to help them rebuild their lives.”
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According to a news release, the largest gift of $100,000 was given to Lee Health, which will support a mobile health care clinic in the Dunbar community near Fort Myers. The underserved community lost its only health care clinic during Hurricane Ian, and the mobile clinic is serving as the area’s only in-person source for health care while more permanent facilities can be obtained.
“The losses that Floridians are still coping with are unimaginable,” said Susan Towler, Florida Blue’s executive director of corporate social responsibility. “As part of our efforts to create strong, resilient communities, we remain committed to being there for the people in our state and making sure they have the essential supplies and support to meet their most immediate needs, including support for their physical health and mental well-being.”
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Other community nonprofits receiving additional hurricane relief funding include:
All Faiths Food Bank, Sarasota
American Red Cross in South Florida, Space Coast, and St. Johns and Putnam counties
Association of Haitians Living Abroad for Development Inc. (AHVED), Fort Myers
Catholic Charities of Venice
Child’s Path, Naples
Community Cooperative, Fort Myers
Feeding Tampa Bay
Global Empowerment Mission (GEM), Fort Myers
Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida, Inc.
Heights Center Inc. Fort Myers
Midwest Food Bank NFP Inc., Fort Myers
Interfaith Charities of South Lee, Fort Myers
United Way chapters for Heart of Florida; Charlotte County; Collier and the Keys; Lee, Hendry & Glades counties; Palm Beach County; St. Johns County; and Suncoast
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In addition to the $2 million donation, Florida Blue Center teams sent mobile units to hard-hit communities after the storm, to assist members who lost medical devices and needed other support, distributed hurricane relief packets, and provided no-cost vaccinations, the release stated.
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