Community Involvement
Our Philosophy: Building Healthier Communities
At Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) promoting health and wellness is one of our core business goals, and it drives our community involvement. We're dedicated to helping Illinois be a healthier place to live, work, and play. Here's how:
Understanding What Communities Need
It takes more than a one-time grant or service project to make a lasting difference in the community. So, we seek out, support, and partner with organizations that already understand how to best meet the needs of their community we do what we can to help their programs succeed.
Being There
The best way to help a community is to be an active part of it. BCBSIL has a presence at diverse events throughout the state, sponsoring the Health and Wellness booths, and participating in several ethnic parades over the summer.
Read our 2010 Illinois Report to the Community 
Read our 2009 Illinois Report to the Community 
Healthy Kids, Healthy Families is a three-year initiative by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois to improve the health and wellness of children throughout the state.
Together with partners across three other states, Healthy Kids, Healthy Families is designed to reach at least 1 million children and their families by focusing on nutrition education, physical activity, disease prevention and management, and supporting safe environments.
Grant opportunities are available for organizations that align with the focus areas of the initiative.
The focus of our grant programs is to support organizations that promote health and wellness and/or provide access to health care for underserved Illinois residents. We offer a grant cycle annually along with a variety of sponsorships.Learn more and apply.
To get the message out about health and wellness, BCBSIL runs two major outreach programs and participates in a variety of diverse outreach events.
Childhood Health and Wellness Initiative
BCBSIL spearheads, sponsors, and participates in a number of activities that encourage kids to eat right and be healthy. Learn More.
CareVan Program
BCBSIL's three CareVan mobile clinics canvas the state, partnering with municipal and county health departments who offer services like free immunizations, dental sealants, and lead screenings. Learn More.
Volunteerism
BCBSIL employees upped their volunteer efforts in 2009, logging more than 5,900 hours of personal volunteer time. BCBSIL also sponsored and had record employee participation in local fundraisers. Learn More.
BCBSIL also partners with organizations that strengthen nonprofits and promote leadership development.
Chicago United
BCBSIL is a member of Chicago United and works with them on diversity related projects. Chicago United also provides a resource for matching nonprofits with diverse board members. Learn more on the Chicago United website .
Arts and Business Council of Chicago
BCBSIL participates in On BOARD, a four-month board member training and placement program for business professionals interested in serving on the board of a nonprofit arts organization in metro Chicago. BCBSIL then funds and supports arts programs associated with its On BOARD involvement. Learn more about On BOARD on the Arts and Business Council of Chicago website .
