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NORTH CHICAGO, Ill., May 21, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- AbbVie, a research-based global biopharmaceutical company, today announced donations to 26 nonprofit organizations totaling $5 million to support immediate COVID-19 relief efforts. Through support from the newly created AbbVie COVID-19 Community Resilience Fund, these organizations will help front-line healthcare workers and vulnerable populations in hard-hit communities.

"At AbbVie, we believe that we should all do our part to alleviate the burden of this global health crisis," said Laura Schumacher, Vice Chairman External Affairs and Chief Legal Officer, AbbVie. "With this support, our partners – from large, well-known international organizations to local, community-based nonprofits – will be able to bring more relief to front-line healthcare workers and society's most vulnerable populations. We are proud to support our partners as they address difficult challenges in this time of dire need."

As a result of AbbVie's donation, national and global nonprofit organizations will:

• Provide 55,000 frontline healthcare workers with critical personal protective equipment (PPE) and training.
• Improve the well-being of 50,000 children and families by providing access to essential resources including healthcare and education.
• Support vital services including shelter for more than 30,000 people experiencing homelessness and other at-risk populations.

"COVID-19 affects us all – our kids, our communities and beyond. But as with any disaster, vulnerable children will suffer most. Since the onset of the pandemic, Save the Children has been working around the clock to meet the urgent needs of kids, including access to food, learning resources and social and emotional support for children living in some of America's most rural communities," said Mark Shriver, Senior Vice President of U.S. Programs and Advocacy at Save the Children. "We are incredibly grateful to AbbVie for supporting these efforts. On behalf of children and their families across America who will benefit from this investment, thank you."

"AbbVie's support will help Sinai Health System provide the kind of care every Chicagoan deserves, especially in our vulnerable communities on Chicago's west and southwest sides," said Karen Teitelbaum, President and CEO of Sinai Health System. "The patients we serve are especially at risk for COVID-19, and these funds will allow Sinai to provide testing, treatment, and rehabilitative care for those in the greatest need."

The COVID-19 Community Resilience Fund is part of AbbVie's broader $35 million philanthropic contribution to COVID-19 relief efforts that also include donations to partners International Medical Corps, Direct Relief and Feeding America. A complete list of COVID-19 Community Resilience Fund donations is below.

AbbVie's Response to COVID-19

During the pandemic, in addition to philanthropic support, AbbVie has been working to ensure that our business continues to operate properly, our employees remain safe and our patients continue to receive their medicines.  For additional information about AbbVie's response to COVID-19, please visit AbbVie.com. 

About AbbVie

AbbVie is a global, research and development-based biopharmaceutical company committed to developing innovative advanced therapies for some of the world's most complex and critical conditions. The company's mission is to use its expertise, dedicated people and unique approach to innovation to markedly improve treatments across four primary therapeutic areas: immunology, oncology, virology and neuroscience. In more than 75 countries, AbbVie employees are working every day to advance health solutions for people around the world. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram.

Chicagoland Area

• A Safe Haven Foundation Chicago helps homeless people that are in sudden or chronic social and financial crisis, including seniors, women and children. Will use donation to purchase additional medical supplies and provide food and essential supplies, as well as support staff members who are on the front lines.
• Big Shoulders Fund supports inner-city schools that provide a quality education for 20,000 students in Chicago from low-income families. Will use donation to enable e-learning programs and provide food and essential needs for families facing economic challenges.
• Breakthrough provides community support for residents in the East Garfield Park neighborhood of Chicago addressing homelessness, health and wellness, workforce development, education, and violence prevention. Will use donation to assist low-income families experiencing hardship and deep clean shelters and housing units in response to a surge in capacity.
• CommunityHealth serves the uninsured and underserved in Illinois through the largest volunteer-based free medical facility in the nation. Will use donation to continue providing comprehensive healthcare and meet the needs of patients who are impacted by COVID-19 stay-at-home orders.
• Lester and Rosalie Anixter Center serves people with disabilities, behavioral health needs and who are deaf, deafblind and/or hard of hearing through its Chicago-based social service agency. Will use donation to provide increased cleaning supplies, screening, PPE and meet other needs for staff and residents.
• Loretto Hospital Foundation offers care through its safety-net, community-based hospital in Chicago. Will use donation to provide emergency staffing and support emergency service operations.
• Near North Health Service Corporation provides care for 45,000 under-served individuals and families in the North, West, and South sides of Chicago. Will use donation to support services for homeless populations across several shelters.
• Sinai Health System serves 1.5 million people across Chicago's West and Southwest Side through seven health care facilities. Will use donation to respond to the surge in patient care, ranging from rapid telehealth implementation and information systems infrastructure to PPE and other critical equipment needed to provide virtual care.
• UCAN serves over 21,000 at-risk children, youth and families across Illinois. Will use donation for emergency assistance, technology upgrades to enable virtual and deep cleaning of their residential and other facilities to ensure safety, as well as to provide enrichment activities for students affected by school closures.
• United Way of Lake County COVID-19 Community Response Fund partners with local nonprofit agencies, Lake County Government and the private sector to help vulnerable individuals and families in high need Lake County communities. Will use donation to meet critical needs identified through the 211 helpline and manage a database of COVID-19 volunteer opportunities.
• University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health works to strengthen the health and well-being of people in Chicago, the State of Illinois and around the world, with a focus on health equity and social justice. Will use donation to provide COVID-19 prevention information, masks and referrals for screening and medical care to people in Chicago's high-risk communities through a community outreach intervention project.

Across the U.S.

• American Red Cross is part of the world's largest volunteer network. Grant will be used to maintain a sufficient supply of blood to help patients in need, and equip and train relief workers, volunteers and staff to respond to disasters during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Heart to Heart International improves health access, provides humanitarian development and administers crisis relief. Will use donation to deploy volunteer health care workers and lab professionals in the hardest hit states and support mobile medical units.
• Love Beyond Walls provides visibility, shelter, community and support services to homeless populations and families to self-sufficiency. Will use donation to support hygiene efforts including maintaining and replacing hand-washing stations in high need areas to reduce spread of virus.
• National Hispanic Council on Aging works to improve the lives of Hispanic older adults, their families, and their caregivers. Will use donation to empower Hispanic/Latino communities and older adult communities with accurate information and resources to stay healthy during the COVID-19 crisis.
• Save the Children serves children in some of America's most remote, rural communities. Will use donation to support urgent needs, including food access, social and emotional supports and distance learning plus e-learning capabilities for children in rural communities impacted by COVID-19.
• YWCA USA is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Will use donation to continue to meet the needs of the most vulnerable children, women and their families in the communities we serve to provide food, supplies, financial assistance, gender-based violence programs, emergency homeless shelters, temporary and transitional housing, and emergency childcare for first responders and essential workers.

Specific U.S. Cities

• Boston Medical Center is an academic medical center and as New England's largest safety-net hospital, provides medical care for Boston's most vulnerable patients and families. The donation will be used to continue providing emergency and medical care to these individuals, including the hospitals' collaboration with the city of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to provide care for up to 250 homeless individuals recovering from COVID-19.
• Codman Square Health Center serves 22,000 patients through a community-focused health care and multi-service center in one of Boston's most vulnerable communities. Will use donation to enable effective screening procedures for patients and visitors, procuring and delivering PPE to health care workers and ramping up the facility's capacity for telephonic health care.
• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center provides medical care as the world's largest and oldest private cancer center. Will use donation for the Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service in New York City, which connects vulnerable individuals and their families to vital resources, including emergency food, public benefits and psychosocial support.
• YMCA Buffalo Niagara serves more than 2,800 children and families in Western New York. Will use donation for school districts providing emergency childcare to essential workers for an additional 100 children at no cost to their families.

Global

• Americares saves lives and improves health for people affected by poverty or disaster so they can reach their full potential. Will use donation to support its COVID-19 response in the U.S. and around the world, including providing personal protective equipment, training and mental health support to ensure health workers can continue their lifesaving work.
• Consortium of Street Children works to change the world for street children globally. Will use donation to support vital services through drop-in centers to provide shelter and healthcare for this vulnerable population. Consortium for Street Children will directly reach over 1,600 children in countries such as the Philippines, India and Bangladesh.
• IsraAID works with communities affected by disasters and displacement around the world. Will use donation to provide relief items, psychosocial support, hygiene awareness information and online educational resources to populations with limited access to services, including refugees, children and front-line workers in 16 countries worldwide.
• MAP International provides medicines and health supplies to those in need around the world so they might experience life to the fullest. Will use donation for critical health supplies and personal protective equipment to aid healthcare personnel in the United States and several vulnerable countries abroad.
• UNICEF USA provides humanitarian and developmental aid to children and adolescents in more than 190 countries. Will use donation for infection prevention training, PPE and psychosocial support for vulnerable populations in under-resourced countries, including Brazil, Greece and Kenya.

SOURCE AbbVie