Aetna Foundation Awards $240,000 Grant to BET Foundation for Healthy Lifestyle Program for African American Girls.-- Health Education & Active Learning (HEAL) Academy promotes optimum health for girls ages 10-18 -- HARTFORD, Conn. -- Aetna (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : AET AET Aetna, Inc. AET After Extra Time AET Actual Evapotranspiration AET Alliance for Environmental Technology AET Alpha-Ethyltryptamine AET Applied Extrusion Technologies, Inc. ) and the Aetna Foundation announced today that they have awarded a $240,000 grant to the BET Foundation to expand its Health Education & Active Learning (HEAL) Academy to help prevent obesity obesity, condition resulting from excessive storage of fat in the body. Obesity has been defined as a weight more than 20% above what is considered normal according to standard age, height, and weight tables, or by a complex formula known as the body mass index. and promote healthy lifestyles for African American African American Multiculture A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. See Race. girls between the ages of 10 and 18. The HEAL Academy is a multi-level, interactive after-school education program that encourages healthy lifestyle changes, physical activity and optimum health. Girls learn why a healthy lifestyle is important and how to make healthy choices through community service projects, coursework coursework Noun work done by a student and assessed as part of an educational course Noun 1. coursework - work assigned to and done by a student during a course of study; usually it is evaluated as part of the student's and group competition. "Addressing health disparities
Health disparities (also called health inequalities in some countries) refer to gaps in the quality of health and health care across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. and encouraging wellness are important initiatives at Aetna," said Chairman and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Ronald A. Williams. "We have dedicated significant time, effort and resources to focus on the issue and seek solutions. HEAL Academy will encourage regular physical activity and promote healthy lifestyles among young people, and will have a direct and positive impact on the problem of obesity in the African American community. Aetna is proud to support this important initiative." The HEAL Academy teaches African American girls to analyze, evaluate and make healthier lifestyle choices, and empowers them with the knowledge, skill and opportunity to become active health advocates for policy changes in their schools, families and neighborhoods. "The BET Foundation remains steadfast in raising public awareness about the prevalence of obesity and associated health problems among African Americans. We are extremely thankful to Aetna for recognizing our effort by supporting the HEAL Academy and its mission to promote healthier lifestyles among African-American girls," said Lynda Dorman, vice president and executive director of the BET Foundation. "With the right tools, resources and motivation, we are helping young girls improve not only their long-term physical and emotional health, but also the overall health of their community." ABOUT BET FOUNDATION The BET Foundation is a non-profit organization A non-profit organization (abbreviated "NPO", also "non-profit" or "not-for-profit") is a legally constituted organization whose primary objective is to support or to actively engage in activities of public or private interest without any commercial or monetary profit purposes. created to raise public awareness to the numerous health-related challenges within African-American communities. Established in 2003, the Foundation takes a pioneering step in addressing one of the leading behavioral-attributed health concerns among African-American women and families, obesity-related health concerns. Through specifically tailored initiatives and targeted campaigns, the BET Foundation aims to ensure that African Americans live longer and healthier lives. The BET Foundation includes public service announcements (PSAs); targeted programming segments; seminars and health forums; health brochure materials; a dedicated toll-free hotline and website; and a nationwide Healthy BET Fitness Challenge contest to provide the tools and knowledge necessary for communities to develop long lasting healthy lifestyle habits. For more information, please visit www.ahealthybet.com. ABOUT AETNA Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 36.7 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health Behavioral health was first used in the 1980's to name the combination of the fields mental health and substance abuse. As an example, an organization serving both mental health and substance abuse clients might refer to its practice as behavioral health or , group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups employer group Association of employers Managed care An entity with a current group benefits agreement in effect with a health plan to provide covered health care services to its employee-subscribers and eligible dependents. , individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. www.aetna.com |
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