WellCare Donates $50,000 to the Memorial Health Foundation to Help Children with Type 1 Diabetes in Georgia and South Carolina
Approximately 1.5 Million People in the US Have Type 1 Diabetes
Approximately 1.5 Million People in the US Have Type 1 Diabetes
ATLANTA and TAMPA, Fla., March 16, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- WellCare of Georgia, a subsidiary of WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG), today announced that it donated $50,000 to the Memorial Health Foundation, which is affiliated with Memorial University Medical Center, to fund a program for low-income children with Type 1 diabetes.
The Memorial Health Foundation, through its fundraising and philanthropic programs, supports the mission of Memorial University Medical Center to provide world-class health care services in southeast Georgia and southern South Carolina.
Memorial University Medical Center will use the funds for a program serving low-income and medically underserved populations to educate them to recognize the early symptoms of the disease; to provide individual counseling for pediatric patients and their families, including daily diabetes management education; to raise awareness of the disease; and to provide a greater understanding of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.
Each year in the U.S., 13,000 children are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and more than 1.5 million American children and adults live with the disease every day.
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin, a hormone needed to allow blood sugar glucose to enter cells to produce energy. Most patients must be treated with insulin for their entire lives to prevent the blood sugar glucose from reaching levels that damage tissues and threaten life.
"As the only children's hospital in the region, Memorial has the facilities to care for our children. This generous donation will help us to provide education and resources to help our children who are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes," said Bill Lee, Memorial University Medical Center's senior vice president and chief strategy officer.
"A significant number of Americans struggling with diabetes, particularly those in low-income and medically underserved populations, do not fully understand how to manage their and their childrens' diabetes on a day-to-day basis," said Roman Kulich, WellCare's region president, Georgia and South Carolina. "WellCare is proud to support Memorial University Medical Center to help drive awareness, prevention and detection of this serious disease."
As of Dec. 31, 2015, WellCare serves approximately 585,000 Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids® plan members, 36,000 Medicare Advantage plan members and 22,000 Medicare Prescription Drug Plan members in Georgia. To learn more about how we care for Georgians watch Gloria's story at http://youtu.be/qyn-nywze04.
About WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
Headquartered in Tampa, Fla., WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) focuses exclusively on providing government-sponsored managed care services, primarily through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Plans, to families, children, seniors and individuals with complex medical needs. WellCare serves approximately 3.8 million members nationwide as of Dec. 31, 2015. For more information about WellCare, please visit the company's website at www.wellcare.com or view the company's videos at https://www.youtube.com/user/WellCareHealthPlan.
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SOURCE WellCare Health Plans, Inc.
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