New Green & Healthy Homes Initiative grant supports continued efforts to improve pediatric asthma in the Greater Richmond Region of Virginia

October 30, 2018

Media contact:
Joshua Ogburn, 571-215-2929
Email: josh.ogburn@virginia.edu

(Richmond, Va.) – The Richmond City Health District (RCHD) is one of six recipients selected from around the United States by the Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) to receive funding and technical assistance services for Pay for Success project development through a Social Innovation Fund award from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS).

The six award recipients will receive assistance developing and implementing groundbreaking projects that will improve outcomes for adults and children with asthma and older adults who face at-home trip and fall injury risks. Overall, these services will lead to better health and quality of life outcomes for low-income children, families, and seniors.

 “This is excellent news for the City of Richmond and will provide additional resources to improve the health of our residents,” said Mayor Levar M. Stoney. “I commend the Richmond City Health District and the RVA Childhood Asthma Collaborative for their work in making this happen.”

Richmond City Health District (RCHD) applied for the GHHI grant, which comes with up to $50,000 cash and $430,000 value in technical assistance on behalf of the RVA Childhood Asthma Collaborative, which includes leadership from the region’s major health systems. The Collaborative has worked over the past two years to build partnerships and develop a plan to improve the health of asthmatic children throughout the Greater Richmond Region. Joshua Ogburn, Director of the University of Virginia Pay for Success Lab and Project Director for the Collaborative states that, “this grant will allow regional stakeholders to explore proven childhood asthma approaches and innovative financing that address Social Determinants of Health, which have a large influence on healthcare outcomes and costs.”

Additionally, this past year, RCHD and community partners formed the Richmond City Healthy Homes Coalition (HHC), which joined with City of Richmond administrators and the Mayor to work through a GHHI Onboarding Process. The process will soon lead to the City of Richmond’s designation as a Green & Healthy Homes Initiative City. This work began shortly after the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation awarded the City of Richmond with the Culture of Health Prize in 2017.

“We congratulate the Richmond City Health District on being selected for a GHHI Pay for Success development award. The process was incredibly competitive and their application and vision stood out as among the very best. Richmond has created a series of innovative projects to advance the integration of health, housing and equity, to reduce the incidence of asthma with a goal that every family can have access to a healthy, safe and affordable home.  We look forward to helping Richmond meet this goal and sustain this work into the future.” said Ruth Ann Norton, President & CEO, Green & Healthy Homes Initiative.

The Collaborative, HHC, and City administrators are all excited about this impactful grant and look forward to working with GHHI to improve the lives of asthmatic children across the region.