Denver, CO, Sept. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP), a national program serving first-time moms and their children living in poverty, recognized Verizon and Action Technologies Group (ATG) for their partnership in providing iPhones at no cost to moms in need since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Robert F. Hill Award for Exceptional Impact was presented this morning Re:Imagine, NFP’s first-ever national online event. The award is typically presented at NFP’s annual symposium, which was “reimagined” this year as a virtual space for connecting, learning and reenergizing.
After stay-at-home restrictions were put in place, local Nurse-Family Partnership nurses across the U.S. identified that a significant number of clients – first-time moms – did not have access to a smartphone and would no longer be able to communicate with their nurses during the pandemic. To help NFP moms keep their critical connection with their nurses, the Nurse-Family Partnership National Service Office worked with Verizon and ATG to provide 3,800 iPhones with data plans at no cost to moms in 39 states. This program, called Phones for Families, represents a gift to moms of more than $1 million in products and discounted services from Nurse-Family Partnership’s two largest corporate partners.
“For thousands of expectant and new moms without phones, being forced to move to telehealth by the pandemic would have meant that they lost access to their NFP nurses at the worst possible time,” said Frank Daidone, president and chief executive officer of Nurse-Family Partnership’s National Service Office. “Verizon and ATG partnered with us at a critical time to remove the barrier to telehealth and ensure that moms and nurses could stay in touch. NFP could not have created and implemented Phones for Families without Verizon and ATG as partners.”
In addition to Verizon providing iPhones for thousands of NFP moms at no cost to the moms, Verizon and ATG have provided technical expertise and operational support, which made it possible for Nurse-Family Partnership to rapidly launch this initiative at the beginning of the pandemic. Nine percent of NFP’s nurse-client telehealth visits have taken place on a phone provided by Verizon.
“We are honored by Nurse-Family Partnership’s recognition for this special work that ensured NFP moms in the program had the necessary resources and connectivity at their fingertips when they could no longer meet with their nurses in person,” said Patty Roze, vice president of State, Local and Education at Verizon. “Our team was able to quickly step in and help support NFP’s mission by delivering 4G LTE data plans and 3,800 iPhones at no cost to the first-time and expectant mothers.”
ATG – a Telecom and IT solutions company – has donated in-kind services valued at more than $100,000. This donation included iPhone programming, security and mail distribution, which put phones quickly into the hands of moms throughout the pandemic.
“We are proud to partner with NFP and Verizon to provide these new and soon-to-be moms access to invaluable resources during the times they need it most. Being a part of this project has inspired us to offer more within our own communities,” said Matthew Pannell, founder and chief operating officer of ATG.
The Exceptional Impact Award celebrates individuals and organizations who have made a momentous impact on Nurse-Family Partnership’s mission and vision for the future. Named for Robert F. Hill – our inaugural board chairman and one of the first recipients of the award – this award is given to those that have championed efforts to provide better opportunities for first-time mothers and their children. The award honors those who tirelessly advocate for Nurse-Family Partnership to change the lives of vulnerable families across the country and end the cycle of poverty.
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About Nurse-Family Partnership
Nurse-Family Partnership® changes the future for the most vulnerable babies born into poverty by giving a first-time mom trusted support from her own personal nurse throughout the first 1,000 days, from pregnancy until her child’s second birthday. The program currently has over 40,000 families enrolled in 40 states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and many Tribal communities. Nurse-Family Partnership is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Follow NFP on Twitter @NFP_nursefamily, Facebook at facebook.com/nursefamilypartnership and Instagram at www.instagram.com/nursefamilypartnership/.
About Verizon
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) was formed on June 30, 2000 and is celebrating its 20th year as one of the world’s leading providers of technology, communications, information and entertainment products and services. Headquartered in New York City and with a presence around the world, Verizon generated revenues of $131.9 billion in 2019. The company offers voice, data and video services and solutions on its award-winning networks and platforms, delivering on customers’ demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity, security and control.
About Action Technologies Group
Action Technologies Group (ATG) is a Telecom and IT solutions company whose purpose is to treat every situation with a sense of urgency and provide quick, knowledgeable and dependable solutions.