Blue Shield of California Foundation

 

Key Facts

Key facts that define and guide the work of Blue Shield of California Foundation.

Blue Shield of California Foundation

As one of the largest healthcare foundations in the state, Blue Shield of California Foundation acts as a bridge between the public, private and nonprofit sectors. Each year, Blue Shield of California Foundation:

  • Donates nearly $30 million
  • Reaches 46 of 58 California Counties
  • Provides vital support to nearly 200 Community Clinics
  • Funds over 100 domestic violence shelters
  • Sponsors evaluation of up to 12 emerging medical technologies

Health Care and Coverage Program

Blue Shield of California Foundation believes every California resident should have access to quality health care. We are committed to providing care for those most in need, the poor, the uninsured, children and families living on tight budgets. The following facts guide the work of our Health Care and Coverage Program:

  • One in five Californians does not have health insurance1
  • 6.7 million Californians are uninsured2
  • More than 80 percent of uninsured Californians are workers and their family members3
  • In the last five years, premium costs for employer-sponsored family health coverage have risen 73%4
  • Almost 70% of California’s uninsured children are part of a family where the head of household works full-time, year-round5

Health and Technology Program

Managing the integration of emerging technologies into medical practice represents a significant opportunity to increase the quality and efficiency of health services. Work of Blue Shield of California Foundation’s Health and Technology Program is guided by the following facts:

  • 98,000 die every year from medical injuries in hospitals6
  • 2 million patients acquire infections in hospitals annually7
  • Fewer than 5% of physicians nationally use a computerized system for patient care8
  • More than 90% of the estimated 30 billion healthcare transactions in the United States each year are still conducted by phone, fax or mail9

Blue Shield Against Violence

Blue Shield of California Foundation is the largest private funder of domestic violence programs in California. While we are proud of our long-standing commitment, we are well aware of how much more support is needed to overcome this tragically common problem. Key facts that guide our Domestic Violence Program work follow.

  • One in three women are victims of domestic violence10
  • 50% of men who frequently assault their wives also frequently abuse children11
  • One in five adolescent girls report being physically or sexually hurt by a dating partner.12
  • 94% of security directors surveyed rank domestic violence as a high security issue at their company13

 

1 Brown, E. Richard; Lavarreda, Shana Alex; Rice, Thomas; Kincheloe, Jennifer R.; and Gatchell, Melissa S., The State of Health Insurance in California: Findings from the 2003 California Health Interview Survey, UCLA Health Policy Research Brief, August 2005
2 Statehealfacts.org, California: Health Insurance Coverage of the Total Population, states (2005-2006), U.S. (2006), The Henry Kaiser Family Foundation   
3 Brown, E. Richard; Cummings, Janet; Lavarreda, Shana Alex; Ponce, Ninez; Rice, Thomas; and Yoon, Jean:  The State of Health Insurance in California: Findings from the 2005 California Health Interview Survey, UCLA Center for Health Policy Research Brief, July 2007
4 The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust, Employer Health Benefits 2004 Annual Survey
5 The Kaiser Family Foundation and Health Research and Educational Trust, Employer Health Benefits 2004 Annual Survey
6 Institute of Medicine, To Err is Human: Building a Safer Health System, November 1999
7 Nguyen, Quoc V., MD, Hospital-Acquired Infections, September 2004
8 Burt, Catharine W., EdD, Hing, Esther, MPH, Use of Computerized clinical Support Systems in Medial Settings: United States, 2001-03. Advance Data Number 353, March 15, 2005
9 US Institute of Medicine, Quality Chasm Report, 2001
10 The Commonwealth Fund, Health Concerns Across a Women's Lifespan: 1998 Survey of Women's Health, May 1999
11 Strauss, Murray A., Gelles, Richard J., and Smith, Christine. 1990. Physical Violence in American Families; Risk Factors and Adaptations to Violence in 8,145 Families. New Brunswick: Transaction Publishers
12 Jay G. Silverman, PhD; Anita Raj, PhD; Lorelei A. Mucci, MPH and Jeanne E. Hathaway, MD, MPH, Dating Violence Against Adolescent Girls and Associated Substance Use, Unhealthy Weight Control, Sexual Risk Behavior, Pregnancy, and Suicidality, Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 286, No. 5, 2001
13 Society of Human Resource Management, Domestic Violence in the Workplace Survey, June 2005.