Sarah Ford | August 13, 2015
Building a Healthier, Happier Future for Children Through Corporate Giving Programs
One in four Texans lives at or below the poverty level; for children, it’s nearly one in three. More than 6.3 million Texans – including 1.2 million children – lack health insurance. The uninsured are up to four times less likely to have a regular source of health care and are more likely to die from health-related problems. Related to communicable diseases, it is estimated that 1 in 4 children living in Texas go without all the necessary immunizations to lead healthy, happy lives due to a lack of affordability and access to medical care. Finally, lacking a medical home, most often uninsured people tend to look for health care in the emergency room, the most expensive setting they could possibly choose.
Providing Affordable, Accessible Medical Care
Through its primary community outreach effort, the Care Van® Program, Caring for Children Foundation of Texas is providing direct access to immunizations and life-saving vaccines for children. We know that vaccines work, and we believe every child should receive all age-appropriate vaccines. Immunizations give the kids we serve a chance to lead a healthier life. We work with community partners throughout Texas to identify neighborhoods for our vans to visit and have expanded our services by offering additional school-based clinics, allowing us to reach nearly 50,000 each year. To that end, for the past 20 years, we have provided more than 1.2 million doses of vaccine. We are committed to improving the health outcomes of children in Texas. Our vision is for no child to suffer from vaccine-preventable diseases.
In addition to immunizations, through our Care Van® Program we also have examined the need for oral health care in some of the communities we serve. As a result, we teamed with both private and public dental collaborators in four regions of the state to conduct dental outreach. Care Vans are used to transport dental equipment and supplies to provide free dental screenings and sealants to children at no charge. Since 2008, through these collaborations, nearly 180,000 children have received free oral health care.
How Companies and Donors Can Help
Our mobile outreach is only possible through the support of community organizations serving as host sites, along with the generosity of more than 1,200 volunteers and generous donors. Immunizations continue to be one of the most direct, easiest and least expensive way to build a healthier future for a child. A $10 donation will help immunize one child with lifesaving vaccine to prevent polio, meningitis, measles or even chicken pox. To take that impact up a level, let’s say you support Caring for Children Foundation of Texas through workplace giving and have $10 deducted from your paycheck each pay period (26 pay periods for this example) – that’s a total donation of $260 during the course of one year. By the end of the year, you will have provided 26 children with immunizations they need to be healthy. Imagine the impact if a company matches that gift!
One hundred percent of your tax-deductible donation goes to providing health education, nurses and medical supplies needed to operate the Care Van® Program. We have zero administrative costs! Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas provides all administrative expenses for the Caring for Children Foundation and Care Van® Program fleet. The Caring for Children Foundation of Texas accepts all types of gifts from corporate sponsorships garnering name recognition on one of our vans to in-kind donations of medical gloves to printing health education materials for families. You can also double or triple the number of children you can help with your donation by enrolling in your employer’s matching gift program.
Together, we can build healthier futures, one child at a time!
Support Caring for Children Foundation of Texas Through Workplace Giving:
If you or your company would like to support Caring for Children Foundation of Texas through an employee giving program, click here to learn about our corporate giving solutions and request a demo.
Our thanks to Caring for Children Foundation of Texas for sharing the work they’re doing. To learn more about the programs they provide, visit their website at www.carevan.org.
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