For Immediate Release                                                                                    Contact: Lynne Ayres
October 19, 2001                                                                                                    614-221-7614
                                                                                                                          lynnea@ohanet.org

Hospitals Receive Tobacco Settlement Dollars for Programs that Make a Difference

COLUMBUS – Ohio hospitals are receiving nearly $1.2 million in tobacco grants toward programs which will benefit uninsured pregnant women and children and individuals suffering from chronic pulmonary disease. The Foundation for Healthy Communities, an arm of the Ohio Hospital Association, is acting as a clearinghouse to distribute the funds made available through the Ohio Department of Health.

“The objective was to identify the best use of these dollars through creative programs that add value to preventative and treatment programs already in place. Ohio hospitals are well positioned to give the state the biggest bang for its tobacco settlement buck. Hospitals are accustomed to maximizing dollars directed at services and minimizing administrative expense,” said Lynne Ayres, director of the Foundation.

In addition to delivery of more traditional direct services for maternal and pediatric care, many recipients of the funds will extend their traditional outreach with transportation and educational programs benefits. For example, an “asthma club” will be established in school-based health centers to help uninsured children better manage breathing difficulties. Several hospitals will assist pregnant women with comprehensive diabetic care or smoking cessation incentives.

For pulmonary rehabilitation, many institutions will enhance their existing programs with transportation services and more comprehensive and longer-range exercise and education programs. Many of the efforts are targeted to higher-risk groups in certain counties of the state and toward communities serving minority, immigrant and senior populations.

The Foundation announced awards of $795,231 to hospitals for 14 programs targeting uninsured pregnant women and children and $372,058 for 30 pulmonary rehabilitation programs during the first round of tobacco grants. Using Ohio Public Health Priorities Trust Fund monies, created out of the national tobacco settlement, the Foundation has awarded grants to the following hospitals:

Pulmonary Rehabilitation

·    St. Luke’s Hospital, Maumee, $12,000

·    Adena Health System, Chillicothe, $14,640

·    Ohio State University Medical Center, $12,000

·    East Liverpool City Hospital, $14,608

·    South Pointe Hospital, Warrensville Heights, $15,000

·    Wooster Community Hospital, $12,000

·    Salem Community Hospital, $12,000

·    Berger Health System, Circleville, $9,317

·    Akron General Medical Center, $15,000

·    Union Hospital Association, Dover, $9,000

·    Parma Community General Hospital, $12,000

·    St. Vincent Mercy Medical Center, Toledo $9,000

·    Trinity Health System, Steubenville, $14,500

·    Flower Hospital, Sylvania, $12,000

·    Bucyrus Community Hospital, $12,000

·    Mercy Hospital of Willard, $14,993

·    Robinson Memorial Hospital, Ravenna, $12,000

·    Clinton Memorial Hospital, Wilmington, $12,000

·    Medina General Hospital, $12,000

·    Marietta Memorial Hospital, $15,000

·    Bethesda North Hospital, Cincinnati, $15,000

·    Summa Health System, Akron, $15,000

·    Fairfield Medical Center, Lancaster, $12,000

·    Barnesville Hospital, $12,000

·    Upper Valley Medical Center, Troy, $7,000

·    Lake Hospital System, Willoughby, $12,000

·    East Ohio Regional Hospital, Martins Ferry, $12,000

·    The Children’s Medical Center, Dayton, $12,000

·    Forum Health Western Reserve Care System, Youngstown, $12,000

·    Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation, Cincinnati, $12,000

Uninsured Pregnant Women and Children

·    Grady Memorial Hospital, Delaware, $34,291

·    Akron General Medical Center, $76,127

·    Holzer Hospital Foundation, Gallipolis, $64,500

·   University Hospitals of Cleveland, $65,885

·    The Toledo Hospital, $49,500

·    Health Improvement Collaborative of Greater Cincinnati, $46,200

·    Mercy Medical Center, Springfield, $69,500

·    Rural Health Collaborative of Southern Ohio, Georgetown, $42,720

·    Ohio State University Hospitals, Columbus, $66,000

·    Grant/Riverside Methodist Hospitals Foundation, Columbus, $33,000

·    Summa Health System, Akron, $41,508

·    Mercy Franciscan, Cincinnati, $40,000

·    Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation, Cincinnati, $100,000

·     Samaritan Health Foundation, Dayton, $66,000

The Foundation for Healthy Communities was created and endowed by Ohio hospitals in 1994 to promote creative collaborations for better health. It encourages hospitals and health systems to move beyond traditional roles of healing illness and injury and develop promising methods for promoting health in ways that will help all members of their community realize their potential.

The Foundation is an arm of the Ohio Hospital Association. OHA represents more than 170 hospitals and 40 health systems throughout Ohio. OHA’s mission is to provide leadership. OHA works with members in meeting the health care needs and improving the health status of the communities they serve. Visit OHA and learn more about the Foundation for Healthy Communities at www.ohanet.org.

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