Tennessee is our home.
As our state’s leading insurer, we’re committed to give back to the people, families and communities we serve. And we have a legacy of making a difference — awarding $100 million from our foundation and trust since 2005.
We’re proud to do that through our foundation with charitable donations, scholarships and much more. You’ll also find our people donating their time to great causes statewide.
Your communities, your BlueCross Healthy Places
We are committed to creating spaces that are free and open to the public right here in Tennessee where neighbors, families and friends can connect. That’s why our foundation is building BlueCross Healthy Places across the state. We know these active outdoor parks and facilities will be places we can all come together, get active, learn and grow.
We started in Memphis, where we asked kids and adults to tell us how best to spark physical activity and connect communities, leading to a community-led design for the BlueCross Healthy Place at David Carnes Park.
So far, we have opened BlueCross Healthy Places in:
We have several more in progress:
And in early 2021, we’ll be announcing 10 cities we’ve selected for the next set of projects.
Supporting our neighbors through the COVID-19 crisis
In March 2020, our foundation provided $3.25 million in funding to food banks across the state to help residents facing uncertainty about providing food for their families.
In September 2020, the foundation provided $1.1 million for a statewide campaign encouraging Tennesseans to get the flu vaccine, which is especially important this year as flu season overlaps with the pandemic. The funding supported educational messaging about the importance of the vaccine and established drive-through flu shot clinics with provider partners in Jackson, Memphis, Murfreesboro and Nashville. The clinics were available to everyone, not just BlueCross members, and shots were free.
In November 2020, our foundation gave $400,000 to support four iconic Chattanooga institutions:
- Bessie Smith Cultural Center
- Creative Discovery Museum
- Hunter Museum of American Art
- Tennessee Aquarium
And BlueCross has worked diligently throughout the year to enhanced our member support throughout the COVID-19 pandemic in a number of ways, which you can read about on BCBSTUpdates.com.
Our communities deserve both our dollars and our time.
2/3 of BlueCross employees in Tennessee volunteer
We give millions of dollars and thousands of volunteer hours each year to improve community health right here in Tennessee.
Supporting education and bridging the digital divide
We also know that education can improve the health of our neighbors and our communities as a whole. So the BlueCross Foundation has supported a number of efforts to support more opportunities for students to learn and grow.
The foundation gave $1 million to help provide no-cost, high-speed internet access for 28,500 students in Hamilton County.
In 2019, the foundation announced the development of two BlueCross Technology Academies: one at Red Bank High School and one at Soddy Daisy High School. These intensive learning programs combine specialized curriculum and mentorship programs with BlueCross staff members to ready students for in-demand careers in the technology sector.
Each year, the foundation also awards the BlueCross Power of We Scholarship, which provides $10,000 each year to at least three students who are pursuing careers in health care. (In 2020, the foundation awarded six.) The scholarship aims to bridge gaps in care and increase minority representation in the field to improve health outcomes for these groups.
The foundation has also supported career readiness programs like Chattanooga 2.0 and STEP-UP Chattanooga.
Thousands of hours per year
Donations are important, but it’s not enough to write a check.
We donate thousands of volunteer hours as well, distributing meals at food banks, advocating for people experiencing homelessness, and serving as board members for some of Tennessee’s most impactful charities.
And during the COVID-19 era, employees have participated in virtual volunteer efforts like making phone calls to check in on the wellbeing of seniors at risk.
Our people are committed to serving our neighbors.