Solera Health and Black Women's Health Imperative Announce Partnership to Combat Diabetes

PHOENIX, AZ--(Marketwired - Jan 5, 2016) - Solera Health, Inc., a technology-enabled health community integrator for evidence-based chronic disease prevention, and the Black Women's Health Imperative (Imperative), a national nonprofit organization that focuses on advancing the health and wellness of Black women and girls in the U.S., today announced that they have partnered to expand reimbursement for the National Diabetes Prevention Program by employers and payers and expand the network of local community affiliates that deliver Diabetes Prevention Programs (DPP).

The Black Women's Health Imperative is the only national organization devoted solely to addressing the most pressing health needs of America's 21 million Black women and girls through advocacy and public policy, health education, research and leadership development. Founded as the National Black Women's Health Project in 1983 by health activist and MacArthur genius Byllye Y. Avery, the Imperative works to advance health equity and social justice for women and men across their lifespans.

Three years ago, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention selected the Imperative as one of six national grantees to help address the rising rates of diabetes. Under the program, the Imperative launched Change Your Lifestyle. Change Your Life. *(CYL²) to prevent type 2 diabetes in individuals who have been diagnosed with prediabetes. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes in the U.S. and one of the biggest health challenges facing communities of color, especially Black women. CYL² educates program participants on how to adopt and maintain key lifestyle changes in an effort to reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. CYL² is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Diabetes Prevention Program.

Since its inception, the Imperative's CYL² program has made significant strides in combating diabetes. Currently, the program is being delivered in five cities at 38 different program sites. Other milestones include:

• Over the past two years, program partners of have enrolled more than 500 participants, the majority of whom are Black women. 
  
  
• The goals of the program are to lose 5-7% of weight and maintain 150 minutes of physical activity each week. One class sponsored by the Imperative's Los Angeles partner, Black Women for Wellness, averaged 13.7% with a 95.2% attendance rate at the end of the 12-month program.
  
  

"Change Your Lifestyle. Change Your Life. has helped hundreds of people -- men and women -- and proves an ounce of prevention is indeed worth a pound of cure. The program also highlights why it's critical for employers and insurers to cover the costs of prevention programs as a health benefit to their employees and members," said Linda Goler Blount, president and CEO, Black Women's Health Imperative. "Our partnership with Solera is helping those organizations recognize that and take action."

Solera Health offers a scalable national model for community-integrated healthcare that drives consumer choice and engagement. The company has transformed the traditional chronic disease prevention delivery program model by streamlining the contracting and referral process for payers, and creating a sustainable revenue model for community and digital program providers. By integrating a nationwide network of community organizations and digital solutions for chronic disease prevention programs, Solera improves health by simplifying patient choice, access and engagement. 

"The Black Women's Health Imperative serves a vital function in the lives of women and men of various races and ethnicities by providing support and advocacy for those living with, or at risk of developing, diabetes," said Brenda Schmidt, founder and CEO of Solera Health. "By offering hyper-local culturally competent programs in a supportive environment, the Imperative is empowering individuals to make large-scale improvements in their health, and supporting patient choice. We look forward to working with them to scale the DPP program to help communities of color address this grave health challenge."

About Solera Health
Solera Health is a technology-enabled healthcare services company that provides access to lower-cost, higher access community and digital preventive health solutions through referrals from healthcare providers and health plans. Solera's proprietary SaaS platform connects a nationwide network of community organizations and digital solutions for chronic disease prevention programs with technology that manages service referrals, reimbursement and payment, aggregates data and reporting simplifying enrollment and supporting increased consumer engagement and choice.

About Black Women's Health Imperative:
The Black Women's Health Imperative is the only national organization solely dedicated to improving the health and wellness of Black women and girls. Through its work, the Imperative invests in programs and partners to educate and empower Black women to achieve optimal health, emotionally, physically and financially. For more information, visit: http://www.bwhi.org/.