Healthy Kids Program Receives $600K From Palo Alto Medical Foundation

Area Dignitaries, Matching Grantors Attend Gift Presentation

Mountain View, Calif., -- Six hundred needy children will get essential health care and insurance, thanks to a $600,000 grant from the Palo Alto Medical Foundation (PAMF) made today to the Healthy Kids program of Santa Clara Family Health Foundation. In a celebratory event attended by 15 elected officials and other supporters, PAMF Executive Vice President Richard Slavin, M.D., presented the check to Kathleen King, executive director of Santa Clara Family Health Foundation.

For only $1,000 a year, the Healthy Kids program can provide full medical, dental, vision and mental health benefits to a child.

“This gift will fund health insurance for 600 children who otherwise would not receive appropriate health care. The recent state budget cuts have negatively impacted county health programs and have reinforced the importance of philanthropic support,” said Dr. Slavin. “This is one of the single largest gifts PAMF has ever made, one which reinforces our long-time commitment to keeping children and their families healthy.”

“Healthy Kids fills the crucial gap in insurance and health care access for many low- and moderate-income families who can’t insure their children because they lack access to employer-sponsored insurance or are not eligible for public coverage via Medi-Cal and Healthy Families,” King explained. “In Santa Clara County, those families can enroll their children in Healthy Kids.”

Launched in 2001, the locally funded Healthy Kids health insurance program increases access to and use of both medical and dental care, which are crucial contributors to children’s overall well-being and health.

A study funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation found that the Healthy Kids program increased preventive care, decreased sick visits to the doctor, improved children’s overall health and resulted in fewer missed school days.

Diane Parnes, executive director of the Sobrato Foundation, and Linda Baker, program officer of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, attended the event and confirmed that these two well-known foundations had each given challenge grants of $100,000 and $200,000, respectively, in support of the Healthy Kids program. Their grants are being matched by PAMF’s generous gift.

One of the many beneficiaries of the Healthy Kids program, Claudia Flores, spoke about her personal experience with the program. Claudia, Rafael and Diana Flores all became Healthy Kids members in 2005. Soon after receiving their health coverage, Diana at the age of 4, was diagnosed with leukemia. She was treated at a children’s hospital and is now in remission and back in school. Claudia expressed her family’s gratitude at this event.

“The work that the Santa Clara Family Health Foundation does to help the neediest of our county’s children is constant and critical. Today, more families than ever are without health insurance. The physicians and professionals of the Palo Alto Medical Foundation recognize this and we are committed to helping children in the communities we serve,” Dr. Slavin expressed in a letter that accompanied the check.

Adding to the celebratory atmosphere of the gift presentation was the presence of several elected officials including:

• A representative of Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, 14th Congressional District
• Senator Elaine Alquist, 13th District
• Assemblymember Jim Beall, Jr., 24th Assembly District Representative; presenting a commendation
• Assemblymember Paul Fong, 22nd Assembly District Representative
• Liz Kniss, Santa Clara County, President of the Board of Supervisors and member of the Santa Clara Family Health Plan; presenting a proclamation
• Margaret Abe-Koga, Mayor of Mountain View; presenting a commendation
• Anthony Spitaleri, Mayor of Sunnyvale; presenting a commendation

For more information, contact:

Cynthia Greaves
PAMF Public Affairs
650-934-8614
greavec@pamf.org

Kathleen King
Santa Clara Family Health Foundation
408-874-1998
kking@scfhp.com