For the past 20 years, the Palmetto Project has been a leading advocate for a more effective system of health care for South Carolinians regardless of their financial circumstances,
race, or residency.
During that time, Palmetto Project became a national leader in patient navigation, community-based care delivery, and reducing cardiovascular disease among at-risk African Americans. Other initiatives have boosted South Carolina to becoming a national leader in childhood immunization, health insurance enrollment, and Medicaid coverage for children.
One of our most successful start-up ventures has been Welvista, a statewide partnership that provides free pharmaceuticals to the hundreds of thousands of South Carolinians without health coverage. Today Welvista is its own non-profit organization and providing medications valued at more than $50 million a year to South Carolinians in need.
Insure SC
Insure SC is a one-stop shop to get information about health coverage options including Medicaid, Medicare, Marketplace, and private insurance. All services are free. It is the first nonprofit insurance agency in South Carolina, and the second in the nation.
Children’s Health SC
Half of all South Carolina children live at or below 200% of the Federal poverty level, and consequently face many health care challenges. Medicaid provides good coverage, but thousands of eligible children go off the rolls each year and face long periods without a medical home or insurance coverage. The Palmetto Project has formed partnerships with the State’s Medicaid agency to more aggressively identify children who have fallen through the cracks and get them enrolled and re-enrolled in Medicaid and into a medical home.
Heart & Soul
Created in 1997, the Palmetto Project’s cardiovascular health initiative among African Americans accelerated a reduction in statewide mortality rates due to heart disease and stroke during its first four years. During that time, the disparity between blacks and whites declined by 50%. The program was created by Palmetto Project staff and volunteers and has received national attention.
Carolina Hearing Aid Bank
Most public and private health care plans do not cover the cost of hearing aids, jeopardizing the ability of South Carolinians who are hard of hearing to work, live on their own, or even communicate with their own families. This is particularly hard on people living below the poverty level. Through a special partnership with Starkey, a national hearing aid manufacturer, the Palmetto Project is able to provide low-income South Carolinians with free hearing aids, which we acquire at a fraction of their retail value.
If you’d like to support this program, you can make a monetary donation or a donation of used hearing aids (which are salvaged for parts only).
In order to qualify for assistance, you must be referred to us by a licensed audiologist or hearing professional who will test your hearing, order the appropriate hearing device and fit you with the hearing aid. Your income must be no more than $15,000 per year.