{"id":57685,"date":"2021-09-16T12:10:34","date_gmt":"2021-09-16T12:10:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pr.asianetpakistan.com\/?p=78955"},"modified":"2021-09-16T12:10:34","modified_gmt":"2021-09-16T12:10:34","slug":"tom-golisano-gifts-30-million-to-special-olympics-to-expand-critical-health-services-globally-for-people-with-intellectual-disabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lebanonnewsgazette.com\/tom-golisano-gifts-30-million-to-special-olympics-to-expand-critical-health-services-globally-for-people-with-intellectual-disabilities\/","title":{"rendered":"Tom Golisano Gifts $30 Million to Special Olympics to Expand Critical Health Services Globally for People with Intellectual Disabilities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
\n

WASHINGTON, Sept. 16, 2021 \/PRNewswire\/ — Special Olympics announced today that it has received its largest single private gift in the organization’s 53-year history.\u00a0Tom Golisano, Paychex founder, philanthropist and father of a son with an intellectual disability, will provide $30 million, his third major gift to Special Olympics, to expand the Special Olympics Healthy Communities<\/a>\u00a0program, which provides health services globally for people with intellectual disabilities (ID), a population that has been critically underserved, especially during the pandemic.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/div>\n

Through the Healthy Communities program over the past five years, Special Olympics conducted 700,000 athlete health screenings \u2013 double the number done in the previous five years \u2013 and offered follow-up care in the communities that decreased urgent referral needs by half. Healthy Communities added 150,000 athletes to fitness and health programs, decreasing their blood pressure, improving health outcomes and potentially adding years to their lives. More than 150,000 health care providers have been trained in 60 countries and 130 health professional schools now have inclusive health curricula to train students on intellectual disabilities. Special Olympics has also partnered with many organizations, including foundations, governments, universities, and philanthropists to contribute to Healthy Communities programming.<\/p>\n

“By investing in our Healthy Communities, Mr. Golisano will allow us to expand to hundreds of new domestic and global regions,” said Dr. Alicia Bazzano, Special Olympics Chief Health Officer. “This new gift comes at a critical time for our global community as we have seen during this pandemic just how little this population has been prioritized.”<\/p>\n

People with intellectual disabilities die on average 16-20 years sooner than the general population. More often than not, these deaths are preventable and result from treatable conditions, like constipation, seizures and heart disease. During the pandemic many people with intellectual disabilities have not had access to critical COVID-19 care and resources like ventilators and vaccines.<\/p>\n

A study published earlier this year in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) Catalyst<\/i><\/a>;<\/i>\u00a0found that people with intellectual disabilities are almost six times more likely to die from COVID than the general population. The pandemic magnified how people with intellectual disabilities historically have not been seen as a priority for access to equitable health care.<\/p>\n

Over the next five years, Special Olympics will move the world closer to inclusion in health care for people with <\/b> intellectual disabilities <\/b> through multiple key strategic actions including:<\/b><\/p>\n