El Centro de Corazón (El Centro) today announced it was selected to receive a $25,000 general support grant from the Siemens Foundation and the Healthy Americas Foundation to advance vaccine distribution and adoption in the Hispanic community. With this COVID-19 vaccination grant, El Centro will enhance efforts to overcome barriers to COVID-19 vaccination access.

“El Centro is appreciative of this gift from the Siemens Foundation and the Healthy Americas Foundation. This award will increase our vaccine distribution capacity in Houston’s East End, providing vulnerable Hispanic families and individuals with access to quality health care and education on the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Marcie Mir, El Centro’s Chief Executive Officer.

“In the Hispanic community, a major issue is access to the COVID-19. We hope this funding will allow for solutions from bringing vaccines to work sites and to the homebound to making vaccines available in community settings and at times that people can access before and after work. This is critical for Hispanics who represent a significant part of the essential worker workforce,” said Jane L. Delgado, PhD, MS, President and CEO of the Healthy Americas Foundation.

“Communities continue to be disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, and the work of the Alliance is critical to advancing health equity through vaccine distribution,” said David Etzwiler, CEO of Siemens Foundation. “We are incredibly grateful to work with the Healthy Americas Foundation and their network to support them in their mission.”

Aligning with its commitment to advance health equity, this donation is part of a larger national effort by the Siemens Foundation to provide $1.4 million, including funding from the Siemens Healthineers fund of the Siemens Foundation, to five non-profit organizations across the country that provide direct outreach in Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous communities most impacted by COVID-19.

For more information on the Siemens Foundation, follow @SFoundation on Twitter or visit siemens-foundation.org.

About El Centro de Corazón

Founded in 1994, El Centro de Corazón (El Centro) is an accomplished Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) with four health center locations in Houston’s East End and offers a comprehensive range of adult and pediatric health care services for the underserved, uninsured, and underinsured, which includes primary care and family medicine, women’s health, dental, and behavioral health services. El Centro also provides ancillary services to assist patients to overcome barriers to accessing health care. In 2020, El Centro provided direct patient care to 12,012 low-income children and adults for a total of 44,200 patient visits.

About the Healthy Americas Foundation (HAF)

HAF is innovating, incubating, and investing in communities. Our efforts are grounded in and celebrate the role of culture; redefine health as not merely absence of illness; and, nurture wellness in body, mind, and spirit. For more information visit us at www.healthyamericasfund.org

The Siemens Foundation has invested more than $130 million in the United States to advance equitable workforce development and education initiatives in science, technology, engineering and math. Its mission is inspired by the culture of innovation, research and continuous learning that is the hallmark of Siemens’ companies. The Foundation is committed to economic, social and racial justice for all in the United States, and together the programs at the Siemens Foundation are narrowing the opportunity gap for young people in the U.S. and igniting and sustaining today’s STEM workforce and tomorrow’s scientists and engineers.

For media inquiries, please contact Kathryn Childress at 713-660-1880 or at kchildress@elcentrochc.org