Blue Shield of California Foundation Awards $4.25 Million to Nonprofits Statewide; $450,000 Directed to UCLA Center for Health Policy Research to Develop Statewide Domestic-Violence Data.

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Blue Shield of California Foundation today announced grants of $4.25 million designed to help the uninsured, combat domestic violence and advance the use of technology to improve access to quality health care. Of the grants, $450,000 will be directed to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research (CHPR) to add domestic-violence data to the California Health Interview Survey for the first time.

"National and state survey data that focuses on domestic violence is sorely lacking," said Crystal Hayling, president of Blue Shield of California Foundation. "Adding a domestic violence element to the California Health Interview Survey will provide invaluable information and understanding about the issue so that it can be addressed more effectively at the state and local level."

Conducted every two years beginning in 2001, the California Health Interview Study (CHIS) is a collaborative of the CHPR, the California Department of Health Services and the Public Health Institute. The survey, conducted by phone with more than 45,000 state households, is designed to produce information on the health of California's diverse population of adults, adolescents and children.

The new data will yield information about the nature and prevalence of intimate partner and family violence statewide and in large ethnic subgroups, including the Latino/Hispanic and Asian/Pacific Islander communities.

The additional Blue Shield of California Foundation grants announced today include:

--$1 million to fund a Public Health Institute project to expand implementation of an on-line "One-e-App" health-program enrollment system in Los Angeles County. Through the project, 50 organizations will be provided with technology, support and information that will automate the process of screening and enrolling their clients in publicly funded health programs, such as MediCal.

--$380,000 for the CaliforniaKids HealthCare Foundation to provide health insurance for low-income children in Imperial, Monterey, Orange and San Diego counties.

--$200,000 to San Francisco's Department on the Status of Women to design and implement a domestic-violence training program for criminal justice personnel. Through the program, 950 staff in the adult probation, district attorney, emergency communications, police and sheriff departments will be trained to effectively respond to domestic-violence issues.

The Blue Shield of California Foundation was formed by Blue Shield of California, a not-for-profit corporation with more than 3.3 million members, 4,500 employees and 20 offices throughout California. The Blue Shield of California Foundation provides charitable contributions, conducts research and supports programs with an emphasis on reducing the number of uninsured, using technology to promote health and preventing domestic violence. For more information, visit the Blue Shield of California website at www.mylifepath.com or the Foundation at www.blueshieldcafoundation.org.