The CCME Foundation funds programs focused on improving health care outcomes among individuals and communities.

Cary, NC – Eight nonprofit organizations in North Carolina and South Carolina have received grants totaling $267,080 from the CCME Foundation, a nonprofit organization located in Cary, NC, supporting health care quality improvement in the Carolinas. The one-year grants run from August 1, 2021, to July 31, 2022.

The following awardees were selected by the CCME Foundation Board of Directors based on each project's impact on health care improvement and access for individuals and communities, particularly the uninsured and under-served populations:

• Greenville Free Medical Clinic (SC) awarded $36,000 for navigation services for screening and treatment of chronic diseases.
• Emmanuwheel (SC) awarded $5,000 to provide wheelchair ramps to referred clients whose income is at or below federal poverty standards.
• The Hunger and Health Coalition (NC) awarded $20,000 for mobile food assistance programs that reach low-income community members unable to receive on-site food assistance services.
• Smart Start of Transylvania County (NC) awarded $35,000 for the Family Connects program that focuses on meeting the needs of newborns, providing equitable access to quality health care and advancing healthy lifestyles.
• Open Door Clinic of Alamance County (NC) awarded $35,000 for a program to launch a hybrid model of in-clinic visits using telehealth pods that will increase patient access to primary and specialty care.
• Dementia Alliance of NC awarded $47,080 for the Dementia Navigation Program that addresses the complexity of care needed for individuals living with dementia.
• NC Harm Reduction awarded $50,000 for a program to increase outreach and linkages to care for people who use drugs, justice-involved persons, and other vulnerable populations in the community to prevent fatal and non-fatal overdoses and build local capacity to respond to the health equity crisis.
• Shelter Health Services (NC) awarded $39,000 for a program aimed at averting onset diabetes in uninsured, medically indigent, and homeless women living in poverty.

"We are excited to help these community-focused programs improve the quality of health care and lives for those in need throughout the Carolinas," said CCME Foundation Chairman Donald J. DiPette, MD, FACP, FAHA. "Being this is the inaugural year for the grants, we anticipate many more in the years to come."

The CCME Foundation was established in 2019 and is funded by The Carolinas Center for Medical Excellence ( CCME ), a separate nonprofit organization founded more than 36 years ago to improve health care quality in the Carolinas.

To learn more on the CCME Foundation and the grants, visit CCME Foundation