Fund Updates and Program Enhancements

Each year, we strive to serve even more patients in need through our programs and services. In 2018, we accomplished that goal by serving more than 117,500 underinsured Americans – a record year for us and our most impactful one to date! Our goal for 2019 is no different. In fact, so far this year we have opened new funds to assist people living with migraines, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, nontuberculous mycobacterium, and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Hayden Burns, Director of the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Foundation, commented on the CLL Fund, “I commend the HealthWell Foundation for launching a fund for Medicare patients living with CLL.” Mr. Burns continued, “The new fund will be helpful to those who are struggling to pay for the exciting new treatments that are becoming available. CLL is often diagnosed in older people who have retired and are no longer in their peak earning years. Such patients would welcome a new source of financial support.”

I’m also excited to share that we recently reopened funds for glioblastoma/multiforme and astrocytoma, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in addition to the dozens of funds we kept open in 2018. We are honored that our dedicated donors recognize the financial burden out-of-pocket costs represent to those we serve and continue to place their trust in us through the launch of new funds and the re-opening of funds that were previously closed. Please continue to visit our Disease Funds listing for the latest status on fund activity or openings.

We continue to identify and implement thoughtful and creative ways to communicate with and educate our stakeholders. I’m excited to share our recently published video that illustrates our Income Document Verification process. As we continue to enhance our programs, we’ll be developing a series of educational videos to guide our users through each step of the grants process. The team and I hope you find these videos helpful and informative.

Since launching our first fund in 2004, we are honored to have served as a financial lifeline to more than 405,000 underinsured patients. We are on the right trajectory to make 2019 another amazing year for our team and for those we serve. I look forward to sharing our final 2018 statistics and more of our 2019 initiatives in future issues.