Health plan and care provider Kaiser Permanente gave $5.2 million to the UCLA School of Public Health to endow the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equality.
The Center for Health Equality is dedicated to improving the health of underserved populations through research, community collaboration and leadership development. The money will support partnerships with community-based organizations to conduct research and develop programs and strategies to eliminate health disparities.
"This generous funding from Kaiser Permanente will enable the center to expand its ability to bring critical resources and attention to communities with the greatest needs," said UCLA School of Public Health dean Linda Rosenstock.
Funds will also go toward expanding the center’s training and technical assistance services, including the development and dissemination of multilingual, culturally appropriate materials, distance learning programs and training tools. The center will place heavy emphasis on attracting and training new talent determined to eliminate disparities.
Center representatives say that stable financial support will allow community leaders and academics to devote sustained efforts toward raising awareness about health disparities, setting priorities and formulating short-and long-range solutions to urgent health issues.
"Our investment in the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity is designed to foster greater collaboration between academia, healthcare providers and the community to help ensure that health equity becomes the norm for everyone in our state and across the nation," said Kaiser senior vice president Raymond J. Baxter.
Kaiser Permanente is a healthcare provider and not-for-profit health plan founded in 1945 and based in Oakland, California. The UCLA School of Public Health is a graduate school of public health affiliated with the University of California, Los Angeles and established in 1961. Linda Rosenstock, the school’s dean, is the former director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.