In many communities, access to preventative health care is a challenge. High populations of uninsured or underinsured individuals, limited access to medical facilities and limited funds to pay for medical services all create barriers that prevent people from getting the health care they need. To help address this need, CVS Health created Project Health — a no-cost, community-based screening program that helps people without regular access to health care understand their risk for chronic conditions and connect to free or low-cost services. Since 2016, Project Health has delivered more than $134 million in free health care screenings to nearly 1.7 million people in racially diverse communities with large uninsured populations.
Now, as this program finishes its 16th year, we’re continuing to expand it and are aligning new screening locations with our Health Zones community investments.
New mobile RV units have made this growth even easier, enabling us to set up Project Health events in more locations. This includes many of our housing partners, such as the UMOM in Phoenix, Arizona. A recent investment in affordable housing will create dozens of new units for recently homeless individuals and families with young children — a demographic with a critical need for access to care, as homelessness often both causes and exacerbates health conditions.
To support this population’s need for access to health care screenings, we are bringing our mobile health services through Project Health directly to these communities, providing free screenings for risk factors such as body mass index, blood pressure and total cholesterol, and offering participants the opportunity to speak with nurse practitioners to help understand their risks and how to take the appropriate next steps.
"Expanding Project Health to cities where we are addressing other social determinants of health, like housing, multiplies our impact in the community," said Eileen Howard Boone, Senior Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility and Philanthropy, CVS Health.
As we work to address social determinants of health in communities around the country, Project Health helps us provide a critical link to health care for vulnerable populations.