{"id":15845,"date":"2026-04-29T13:49:45","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T20:49:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.healthwellfoundation.org\/?post_type=newsletter&p=15845"},"modified":"2026-04-30T08:32:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T15:32:25","slug":"healthwell-foundation-spring-2026","status":"publish","type":"newsletter","link":"https:\/\/www.healthwellfoundation.org\/es\/newsletter\/healthwell-foundation-spring-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"HealthWell Foundation Spring 2026 Newsletter"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

Medication, Food or Daily Needs? Choices Nobody Should Have to Make<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The headline last month was dispiriting: Millions of Americans are skipping meals or cutting back on utilities to afford health care<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This was among the findings of a recent survey<\/a> from the West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America, a joint initiative to report the voices and experiences of Americans within the health care system.<\/p>\n

The survey revealed that roughly one-third of Americans \u2013 the equivalent of more than 82 million people \u2013 are cutting back on a wide range of expenses including groceries, utilities, and driving. They are stretching out doses of prescription drugs, borrowing money, and revising long-term planning and major life decisions to help afford their health care expenses. The poll found that even middle-income households are feeling the strain.<\/p>\n

At the HealthWell Foundation, we don\u2019t need a poll to tell us that Americans are struggling with high health care costs. We hear from patients every day about the real financial obstacles they and their families face when living with a chronic or life-altering illness.<\/p>\n

We are honored that they can turn to us for assistance. Thanks to our generous corporate and individual donors, HealthWell continues to be a financial safety net for underinsured Americans so they can access medical treatments they otherwise could not afford.<\/p>\n

Read on to discover how we\u2019re helping those who often have nowhere else to turn.<\/p>\n

Explore Our Year in Review<\/strong><\/p>\n

In our last issue of The Pulse<\/em>, we offered a glimpse of HealthWell\u2019s most significant milestones for 2025. The full preliminary unaudited results of our 2025 operations are now available in our 2025 Year in Review<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Our Year in Review notes that in 2025, our donors\u2019 generosity resulted in approximately $530 million* in financial support, which allowed us to award over $1.1 billion* in medication copayment and insurance premium assistance through more than 440,000* grants to over 420,000* underinsured patients.<\/p>\n

Thank you to all who helped us ensure that those living with chronic or life-altering diseases have access to critical medical treatments they otherwise would not be able to afford.<\/p>\n

Avoid Multiple Submissions!<\/strong><\/p>\n

HealthWell strives to streamline our processes and provide timely support for patients, so we can get them the assistance they need quickly. Recently, we have experienced a significant increase in the number of diagnosis verification documents we receive, leading to longer processing times, delayed verifications, and high call volumes.<\/p>\n

We ask all patients, providers, and pharmacies to submit only one diagnosis verification form, through one channel, per patient<\/strong>. Duplicate submissions create multiple cases in our system and can significantly delay processing time.<\/p>\n

Thank you for your cooperation in helping us process documents more efficiently so we can continue to provide timely assistance to patients.<\/p>\n

Your Donation Really Does Make a Difference<\/strong><\/p>\n

We opened this edition of The Pulse<\/em> by describing the worrisome choices Americans are forced to make when health care is not affordable. These are choices nobody wants to make, and with your help, they won\u2019t have to.<\/p>\n

With so much need, you may wonder whether your donation makes a difference. The answer is unequivocally YES! Your donation<\/a> \u2013 no matter how small \u2013 really does change lives in meaningful ways.<\/p>\n

Below, Lauren B., a recipient of a HealthWell Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) grant, relays the worry she and her family faced before HealthWell changed her life. After reading Lauren\u2019s words, think about whether you were touched by her story \u2013 whether you could picture yourself in a similar situation if diagnosed with a life-altering condition. You can turn that connection and concern into action and help people like Lauren by donating<\/a> to HealthWell today.<\/p>\n

Would We Have to Sell Our Home to Pay for My Medication? <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) 8 months ago, I had no idea how it would change everything in my life, and I do mean EVERYTHING. It first started in my legs; I couldn\u2019t stand up to walk. I couldn\u2019t lift my feet over the threshold of the shower to enjoy the feeling of warm water on my back. I couldn\u2019t reach the faucet in the sink to wash my hands because by then I was in a wheelchair. I also experienced how it must feel to drown because at times, even when drinking water, it would (as they say), go down the wrong pipe; I couldn\u2019t get air in or out. I\u2019ve gotten weaker every day and sound like I have a frog in my throat because the muscles in my throat and chest have been atrophied and my coughs are little soft sounds, not productive.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Lauren B.<\/p><\/div>\n

They also tell me I will not be able to speak or swallow in the near future and will probably need a feeding tube. Eeeck!<\/p>\n

The ALS Clinic, my doctor, and the therapists have all been great; and I am blessed with a wonderful husband and daughter who are my primary caregivers; and so many dear friends who show up with dinner or help fold laundry or wipe down the kitchen counter for me. All things I did at one time, taking them for granted.<\/p>\n

But the thing I worried about the most was deciding whether we would have to sell our home to pay for medication that would help slow the disease down or not take the medication at all. Then one day, one of my therapists asked if I\u2019d ever heard of the HealthWell Foundation. I had not.<\/p>\n

Even though I wasn\u2019t very hopeful, I looked up the HealthWell Foundation\u2019s phone number and dialed. WOW! That call changed my life! From the person who answered that call to each and every big-hearted person who has graciously donated to the Foundation, I am so grateful. I encourage everyone reading this to tell anyone in your life facing a medical challenge to make the call to the HealthWell Foundation.\u201d<\/p>\n

HealthWell Ad Campaigns Bring Our Story to Those Who Need & Support Us<\/strong><\/p>\n

On the heels of HealthWell\u2019s first TV ad campaign<\/a>, which saw 1.3+ million spots airing over 10,796 hours and reaching more than 322,000 households in Florida, we are taking our message to other areas of the country.<\/p>\n

In March, we launched a digital billboard, outdoor billboard and mobile geofencing campaign in Philadelphia to coincide with the timing of the PAP Patient Assistance & Access Programs Conference. Designed to increase awareness of the HealthWell brand, the campaign resulted in an estimated 8.99+ million billboard impressions and 555,555 geofencing impressions.<\/p>\n

We took our message south targeting downtown New Orleans to coincide, in part, with the American College of Cardiology conference where we promoted our cardiology funds. The campaign netted over 3.1 million billboard impressions and over half a million geofencing impressions.<\/p>\n

\"\" \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

HealthWell Moderated Panel and Exhibited at Asembia\u2019s AXS26 Summit<\/strong><\/p>\n

HealthWell again took a lead role at Asembia\u2019s annual AXS Summit<\/a>, held this year April 27-29 in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n

At the Summit, HealthWell President & CEO, Michael Heimall, FACHE, moderated a panel discussion, The Role of Specialty Pharmacies When Working with Charitable Patient Assistance Programs (CPAPs)<\/em>, on Tuesday, April 28, 2026. This timely discussion focused on independent foundations that help hundreds of thousands of patients each year with medication copayments and insurance premiums. Panelists shared best practices for applying on a patient\u2019s behalf, ensuring accurate diagnoses and eligibility details, and understanding the legal and patient impacts of non-compliance. The session also addressed the rising concern of alternative funding programs (AFPs).<\/p>\n

HealthWell also exhibited at the Summit. \u00a0The team welcomed visitors to talk about our programs and services and how we work together with specialty pharmacies to assist patients in need. Don\u2019t forget to visit our Conference schedule<\/a> to see where we\u2019re going next!<\/p>\n

Webinar Now Available On Demand \u2013 Supporting Patients Together: Financial Assistance Across the Continuum of Care<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

In February, HealthWell launched Financial Toxicity & Patient Navigation: A Solutions-Focused Webinar Series. Our first webinar in the series, Supporting Patients Together: Financial Assistance Across the Continuum of Care<\/em><\/a>, was well attended and offered the option for CME\/CE credits through the Postgraduate Institute for Medicine.<\/p>\n

If you missed the webinar, no worries! You can access it online here<\/a> to learn how to:<\/p>\n