Special Edition – 2023 Recap

Our Commitment to Putting Patients First Never Wavers

At the start of every new year, many of us wonder how we can make the year ahead a little better – a little brighter for ourselves and those around us. We resolve to eat healthier, exercise, save money, start new pursuits, give back to our community, and achieve other goals.

Alas, fewer than 10 percent of us will make those resolutions stick past the end of January, as our will to succeed wavers in the face of life’s day-to-day challenges.

At HealthWell, our will does not waver. Our commitment and resolution are more than annual declarations. Indeed, for more than two decades, we have consistently and continuously demonstrated that we put patients first every single day, in everything we do.

Last year alone, we acted on that commitment by assisting more than 203,000 patients* with over $1 billion* in grants, helping them afford critical, often lifesaving, medical treatments. We launched or re-opened 24 funds in 2023, bringing hope and healing to people who previously had nowhere else to turn. As always, our services are free of charge for patients.

In September, we were also named as an official resource by the White House Cancer Moonshot Initiative. As of the end of 2023, HealthWell has granted over $2 billion in financial assistance to patients living with cancer.

In 2023, we launched a new Family Caregivers web page full of resources, insights, and practical advice for both novice and seasoned caregivers.

We also increased awareness of our commitment to serving patients by traveling across the US to over 30 industry or disease-specific conferences, including the 2023 Healthcare Advocate Summit, where we were proud to be the presenting sponsor.

We are grateful for the trust our patients and donors place in HealthWell. 2023 donations of more than $730 million* helped us continue to assist patients compassionately, compliantly, and efficiently.

None of these accomplishments would have been possible without the support and commitment of the entire HealthWell team. In 2023, we added to our team, welcoming a new CFO and 64 new employees across our Corporate and Contact Center teams.

We’ll have more information about our 2023 achievements in our 2023 Year in Review, which will be available in just a few weeks.

*Unaudited

Foundation and Service Updates

HealthWell started 2024 busier than ever, with more than 100,000 calls coming into our HWF Direct hotline in January. This unprecedented volume of patient inquiries created some longer-than-usual wait times, and we sincerely appreciated everyone’s patience as we worked diligently to serve everyone as quickly as possible.

Fund News

We operated a total of 60 disease-specific and special initiative funds last year and were honored to launch or re-open 24 funds including the following new funds:

• A Blepharitis Fund that provides up to $3,500 in medication copayment or insurance premium assistance.
• A Type 2 Diabetes Fund that provides up to $1,000 in medication copayment assistance.
• An expanded COVID-19 Frontline Health Care Workers Behavioral Health Fund, restructured as the Emergency/Medical Workers Behavioral Health Fund, that provides up to $2,000 in financial assistance for behavioral health services.
• A Systemic Sclerosis with Interstitial Lung Disease Fund that provides up to $9,000 in medication copayment or insurance premium assistance.
• An IgA Nephropathy Fund that provides up to $9,000 in medication copayment or insurance premium assistance, including for standard laboratory monitoring.

New Board Chair Appointed

In early 2023, Stephen M. Weiner stepped down as Board Chair after 19 years of service that included driving the initial establishment of the Foundation. He is succeeded by David Knowlton, who has served as board member and as Chief Compliance Officer for the Foundation. Mr. Weiner will continue to serve on the HealthWell board, taking on Mr. Knowlton’s previous role as Chief Compliance Officer.

HealthWell Ranked as Top Charity and Recognized for 100 Percent Fundraising Efficiency

In December, HealthWell was honored to be ranked #23 on the 2023 Forbes list of America’s Top 100 Charities and to be recognized as one of only nine charities nationwide to achieve a 100 percent fundraising efficiency rating.

While we are humbled to rank so highly in this esteemed publication among so many other worthy charities, we do not take this recognition for granted. HealthWell is greatly appreciative of its individual and corporate donors, whose generous contributions allow us to execute our mission to assist patients compassionately, efficiently, and compliantly.

Giving Back to the Community

As a proud member of both the Montgomery County and Frederick County, Maryland, business communities, HealthWell loves to give back to the place we call home. Here are some highlights from 2023:

HWF Direct employees volunteer every month at the Frederick Rescue Mission, assisting with lunch service and food bank distribution.

For the first time, we also participated in the Frederick Community Health Fair, an annual event that provides attendees with free health screenings, vaccines, and information.

In October 2023, we were honored to be recognized as a major Frederick County employer, playing a vital role in the thriving Frederick community, by The Frederick County Office of Economic Development.

Online Application, Tools, and Resources

HealthWell is committed to ensuring that anyone who reaches out to us receives unprecedented customer service. From initial outreach through the entire grant process, we strive to make working with us as easy as possible. In 2023, we made the following enhancements to our online application and web-based tools to further streamline the grants process.

New Video: What Are Charitable Patient Assistance Programs?

This video about Charitable Patient Assistance Programs (CPAPs) gives patients an overview of how CPAPs work and helps them understand the difference between manufacturer copay programs and CPAPs.

We encourage you to share the video – which provides contact information for all the national foundations providing financial assistance for out-of-pocket costs – with your patients and their caregivers. We also recommend sharing the video during patient enrollment to help us close the loop and ensure patients receive all the information they need.

New Enhancements to Provider and Pharmacy Portals

In 2023, we added a ListView to our portals based on provider and pharmacy feedback. The function allows portal users to toggle between a CardView and a new ListView while navigating different tabs. ListView is a convenient way to view all patients, grants, and payment details in one row. There is also an option to print the ListView.

We also enhanced the user experience by adding a Help Text feature to our portals’ income, diagnosis, and Medicare verification statuses to define each status clearly and make them easier to understand.

Our new Electronic Consent function allows patients and contact affiliates to opt into electronic consent to view letters in their portal account, including grant approval and payment letters.

Conferences and Presentations

We continued to increase our presence at national conferences serving the patient and provider communities. In 2023, we attended 34 conferences, and while they are too numerous to list here individually, we want to share a few highlights.

HealthWell served as presenting sponsor for the third annual Healthcare Advocate Summit in New Orleans, where we hosted a full day seminar, Best Practices for Compliant, Effective, Patient-Focused Interactions Between Pharmaceutical Manufacturer Donors, CPAP Foundations, and Other Stakeholders. Additionally, members of HealthWell’s senior management team led two main-stage discussions: What’s Next in Patient Assistance and Support, and Deep Dive: Advancing Health Equity with Patient Assistance.

We also spread the word about our $1.66 billion in medication copayment and insurance premium assistance across 39 oncology funds to attendees of the 2023 ASCO® Annual Meeting. In addition, we exhibited and participated in Asembia’s AXS23 Summit, where HealthWell’s past President & Chief Executive Officer, Krista Zodet, moderated a panel discussion, The Inflation Reduction Act Impact on Patient Financial Assistance: A Multi-Stakeholder Perspective. The Foundation led a similar panel at the Informa Connect Patient Assistance & Access Programs Conference as well.

HealthWell will be even busier in 2024, so be sure to check out our 2024 Conference schedule to learn where you can meet us. We hope to see you later this year!

Meet the Team

In 2023, HealthWell warmly welcomed Richa Dahiya as our new Chief Financial Officer. Richa joined additional new hires, including 16 new members of our corporate team and 48 new members of our HWF Direct team. You can learn more about the HealthWell team here.

Have You Made a Plan for the Future?

Did you know that creating a will is a great way to plan for the future? In the spirit of providing accessible health and safety resources to our community, HealthWell partnered with FreeWill to provide an online will-writing tool. It’s safe, secure, and takes 20 minutes or less to complete – and it’s 100% free to use! Claim your free will today!

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Your Support Changes Lives

HealthWell is forever grateful for the support of our generous donors. We thank you for helping us help so many in need. Did you know that Donor-Advised Funds are a great way to support our life-changing work?

Donor-Advised Funds

Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) are one of the easiest and most tax-advantageous ways to support organizations you care about. If you have a DAF with Fidelity Charitable, Schwab Charitable or BNY Mellon, consider a gift to the HealthWell Foundation using our DAF Direct tool. Please include your name and address so that we can recognize you for your commitment to helping the underinsured afford critical medical treatments.

If your donor-advised fund is with a different financial institution, please visit:

• Goldman Sachs Philanthropy Fund: GS Philanthropy (goldman.com)
• Raymond James Charitable: Raymond James Charitable | Donor Advised Funds
• TIAA Charitable: RCF Giving Fund
• Vanguard Charitable: Home | Vanguard Charitable

Visit our Individual Giving page to learn other ways you can support our mission.

Can’t make a financial contribution? You can help by spreading the word about the life-changing work we do. Helping us spread the word is a critical, and highly valued, contribution to the HealthWell Foundation. You can help by connecting with us through our social communities! Here’s how you can help us make a difference in the life of a patient in need today.

1. Create a Facebook fundraiser to commemorate a birthday, anniversary or other special occasion.
2. Spread the word about the important work we do by sharing your HealthWell story.