RITTER GRANT LIFTS MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

Ritter Center has been awarded a grant of $750,000 from the Anthem Blue Cross Foundation. This grant will enhance the substance use disorder/mental health treatment and harm reduction programs in Marin County for people experiencing homelessness and individuals with low incomes facing barriers to health care access, the nonprofit’s leaders said. The grant will support an array of critical activities aimed at expanding care coordination and launching new harm reduction training programs, specifically targeting underserved local audiences. “Ritter Center is deeply grateful for the support from Anthem Blue Cross Foundation and looks forward to making a lasting impact on the health and well-being of Marin County’s most vulnerable residents,” said Ritter Center CEO Mark Shotwell. “We believe in the potential of people who have faced challenges to reclaim their health and their lives. We all deserve to be treated with respect regardless of income or housing.” The Anthem Blue Cross Foundation, an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Association and a philanthropic arm of the Elevance Health Foundation, recently announced the expansion of its substance use disorder grants through an additional $1.6 million in awards to seven California nonprofit organizations. The multi-year grants will help those experiencing mental health and substance use disorders focusing on improving access to care, quality of treatment, and youth prevention and early intervention. Nearly half of Ritter Center’s patients identify as racial or ethnic minorities, and the organization remains dedicated to improving their access to care. The majority of Ritter Center’s patients live below the poverty line. For more information, visit rittercenter.org.