BOSTON, MA – July 10, 2024
In an effort to address the digital divide, Link Health has joined forces with NeighborHealth, formerly East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, on an initiative to expand digital equity and ensure that community health centers are equipped with the necessary tools and resources to better serve their communities.
This collaboration introduces significant enhancements for community health centers across Greater Boston. As part of the initiative, NeighborHealth patients received support from Link Health fellows who received specialized training to address digital inequity. Fellows help patients enroll in the Lifeline program, which offers reduced-cost mobile or home internet access to qualifying individuals. The goal is to enhance and empower community health centers to provide improved healthcare access through advanced digital technologies and unlock the $80 billion in federal aid that goes untapped annually.
In support of NeighborHealth’s work to address social drivers of health, Link Health is donating $10,000 to the organization’s Neighborhood PACE program to support older adults thrive in the community through comprehensive medical care, social activities, transportation and connection to social services and resources, including Internet connection.
To date, Link Health and NeighborHealth have screened over 10,000 patients for federal benefits eligibility and have helped disburse $527,535.00 to families that are part of the NeighborHealth network through initiatives like the Lifeline program internet subsidy benefit, among others.
ER physician and Link Health Founder, Dr. Alister Martin, underscores the significance of this partnership, stating, “The fact is that modern healthcare is intrinsically linked to internet access. This local partnership will allow us to expand our efforts in connecting Bostonians to critical federal benefits, thereby fostering health equity and digital access among those who need it most.”
“The internet is a vital technological lifeline that allows us to support ourselves and our families, from finding and accessing healthcare, to looking for a job, to ordering groceries,” said Mimi Gardner, Vice President and Chief Equity Officer, at NeighborHealth. “When partners like Link Health can help our neighbors and patients overcome financial barriers to unlock the power of the internet – that’s a healthcare win.”
For more details about this initiative and its impact on communities, please visit https://link-health.org/ or contact arsheill@ahealthierdemocracy.org.
This initiative is supported by $20 million in new grants awarded by the Healey-Driscoll Administration in collaboration with the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) through the state’s Digital Equity Partnerships Program. Link Health is partnering with the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers in the Digital Equity Partnerships Program to bring internet access to our health center patients.
About Link Health:
Founded by ER physician and Harvard Assistant Professor, Dr. Alister Martin, as a branch of the non-profit incubator A Healthier Democracy, Link Health epitomizes the commitment to fostering health equity and civic participation. Link Health’s groundbreaking contributions have been featured at the Aspen Institute, The Boston Globe, Houston’s KPRC, and the New England Journal of Medicine.
About NeighborHealth:
NeighborHealth, formerly East Boston Neighborhood Health Center, is one of the nation’s largest Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and the largest community-based primary care health system in Massachusetts, serving over 120,000 people and recognized by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) as a National Quality Leader. For more than 50 years, NeighborHealth has offered access to comprehensive primary care, specialty care and emergency care for patients in the Commonwealth. In a first-of-its-kind merger in 2020, East Boston Neighborhood Health Center joined forces with the South End Community Health Center and expanded services to patients who live and work in Boston’s South End and Roxbury neighborhoods. NeighborHealth champions innovative care models to actively bridge health equity gaps in our low-income and immigrant communities with services unique from other healthcare providers in our state. For more information, visit www.neighborhealth.com
