Women's Health Grants

Blagojevich administration announces almost $400,000 in Women’s Health Initiative Grants for Chicago

Grants will help raise awareness and educate women about the health risks associated with common disease and health conditions

CHICAGO, Ill. – On behalf of Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich, Dr. Eric E. Whitaker, Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, announced today at the Chinese American Service League almost $400,000 in Women’s Health Initiative Grants for non-profit organizations, health departments and service agencies to institute educational programs about cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and menopause. The Chinese American Service League is receiving a grant to support a program that educates women about menopause.

“Many women spend so much time taking care of their families, they may not take enough time to care for themselves,” said Gov. Blagojevich. “Some diseases that affect women - including heart disease and osteoporosis - can be detected or even prevented through increased awareness. These grants are small investments that can go a long way toward raising awareness and helping communities promote healthy living.”

The Illinois Department of Public Health’s Office of Women’s Health administers the grants, which are awarded to organizations that implement programs that provide guidance on issues related to nutrition, exercise, risk assessment, treatment options and prevention strategies.

“The Office of Women’s Health recognizes the need to educate the public about the benefits of healthy lifestyles and that positive behavioral changes can help improve and prevent a variety of chronic conditions,” said Dr. Whitaker. “We’ve added two new programs this year, Osteoporosis Prevention for Teens and Jump Girl Jump to address the common health condition of bone loss and at the request of grantees to add more programs for young girls.”

The Chinese American Service League received $20,000 for its Understanding Menopause program, which offers educational sessions that help women understand peri-menopause and menopause and inform them about related health issues such as mood and sleep changes and hormone replacement.

“The Chinese American Service League (CASL) values the Illinois Department of Public Health as a crucial partner in addressing the health needs of the Chinese community in Chicago. IDPH’s “Women’s Health Initiative” grant is a welcome addition to our health program. It will greatly aid our efforts to serve the women in our community, and will be an integral part of CASL’s comprehensive array of social service programming that serves all ages in our community,” said CASL President Bernarda Wong.

The Women’s Health Initiative Grants are funded through state general revenue funds and include six programs.

Heart Smart for Women, a 12-week community-based program designed to change unhealthy behavior while promoting the benefits of exercise and nutrition.

Heart Smart for Teens, a nine-week nutrition and exercise curriculum geared to school-aged girls.
Building Better Bones, a program for women that offers group education sessions as well as bone density screenings for osteoporosis.
Osteoporosis Prevention for Teens, a program targeting high school freshman and sophomore students that includes a presentation on osteoporosis and several activities which include a nutrition demonstration and exercises to promote bone building.
Jump Girl Jump, a four-session structured jump rope and nutrition program for grade school girls designed to create awareness of bone health, physical activity, and the importance of calcium intake.
Understanding Menopause, a program that offers educational sessions that help women understand peri-menopause and menopause and inform them about related health issues.

Gov. Blagojevich has made other significant contributions to promote and improve women’s health including:

Increased funding for women’s health: Governor Blagojevich has consistently made women’s health a priority, allocating $24.1 million in state funding for women’s breast and cervical health programs over the last four years. This year, Governor Blagojevich allocated $2.1 million in new funding to increase eligibility for life-saving breast and cervical cancer screenings to women with incomes up to 250% of the federal poverty level. Since the Governor has been in office, more than 37,000 women, 48 percent of whom are minorities, received free screenings through the Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program (IBCCP).

Signed women’s health legislation into law: Last summer, Gov. Blagojevich signed several pieces of legislation affecting women’s health in Illinois. The “Ticket for a Cure” is a new lottery game to raise money for breast cancer research. Senate Bill 12 requires insurance companies to cover screening for breast cancer earlier in a woman’s life if her doctor considers her to be at a higher risk of developing breast cancer. House Bill 3564 expanded and renamed the Penny Severns Breast and Cervical Cancer Research Fund to include ovarian cancer research. Senate Bill 521 requires insurers to provide coverage for ovarian cancer screening tests for women who are at risk. In 2004, Gov. Blagojevich also signed legislation creating a 12-member Cervical Cancer Elimination Task Force to help educate the public about cervical cancer and develop a statewide comprehensive prevention and control plan.
Stand Against Cancer Initiative: Beginning in 2003, Gov. Blagojevich funded the Stand Against Cancer Initiative (SAC), a community outreach and screening program targeting the hardest to reach minority women. It is conducted by a coalition of neighborhood organizations, churches and Federally Qualified Health Centers. In fiscal year 2005, SAC provided more than 17,000 breast and cervical cancer screenings and reached more than 47,200 other women through educational programs and outreach.
Hispanic Breast and Cervical Cancer Initiative: In 2005, Gov. Blagojevich launched the Hispanic Breast and Cervical Cancer initiative, which is closely patterned after the Stand Against Cancer initiative. Women screened through the initiative who subsequently need diagnostic tests are referred to local IBCCP lead agencies.
IllinoisWISEWOMAN Program: Providing the WISEWOMAN cardiovascular research program in both English and Spanish languages in 21 Illinois counties. The project is targeted toward women enrolled in the Breast and Cervical Cancer Program and helps them reduce heart disease by leading healthier lifestyles.
Women’s Health-Line: Increased access to services through Women’s Health-Line and other informational resources. In FY06, the state-funded toll-free Women’s Health-Line responded to more than 2,000 requests, referring women to services and providing more than 600,000 free educational materials to women and community providers. These materials are also available through the department’s website.
Illinois Healthy Women program: The Healthy Women program has helped women across the state who are losing their Medicaid eligibility stay healthy and promoted healthy births by providing comprehensive reproductive health care coverage, including annual physicals, Pap smears, mammograms, screening and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases and contraceptives. Over 120,000 women have been offered this program since its inception in 2004.

Earlier this month the state announced more than $1 million in Women’s Health Initiative Grants for Illinois communities outside of Chicago.

For more information on women’s health and programs offered through the Illinois Department of Public Health visit www.idph.state.il.us or call the Women’s Health-line at 888-522-1282 or for TTY, (hearing impaired use only) 800-547-0466.

A chart of Women’s Health Initiative Grantees for Chicago for Fiscal Year 2007 follows.

Women’s Health Initiative Grantees

Organization	City	Project	Amount
ABTC Educational Services/ Urban Life Line	Lisle/Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$16,000
Asian Human Services	Chicago	Heart Smart for Women	$27,000
Chinese American Service League	Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$20,000
Coalition of Limited English Speaking Elderly	Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$20,000
Community Health Partnership of Illinois	Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$25,000
Council for Jewish Elderly	Chicago	Building Better Bones	$22,000
Family Focus, Inc.	Aurora/Chicago	Jump Girl Jump	$25,000
Korean American Community Services	Chicago	Building Better Bones	$26,500
Michael Reese Hospital	Chicago	Building Better Bones	$20,000
Midwest Latino Health, Research, Training and Policy Center	Chicago	Building Better Bones	$25,000
St. Xaiver University	Chicago	Heart Smart for Women	$30,000
Sinai Community Institute	Chicago	Heart Smart for Women	$32,000
St. Ailbe Catholic Church	Chicago	Heart Smart for Women	$25,000
United Neighborhood Organization	Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$25,000
Vietnamese Association of Illinois	Chicago	Understanding Menopause	$28,000
White Crane Wellness Center	Chicago	Building Better Bones	$33,000