Our Pledge

Good health— and health care — shouldn’t depend on what you look like or where you live. But, unfortunately, for people of color that’s not always the case.

Throughout our 90-year history, Horizon has stood firmly against racism, discrimination and hate. We are proud of our history, our work and our achievements in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and we have pledged to achieve positive and lasting change.

As part of Our Pledge, we will address health care disparities related to race and the social barriers our members face in getting care. Our goal is to have programs that positively impact the health of our members and a provider network that better reflects the diversity of the communities we serve.

This commitment is already apparent in Our Pledge and existing initiatives, including:

• Deploying the Horizon Neighbors in Health program, the most comprehensive effort yet in New Jersey to remove barriers that prevent Horizon members living in underserved communities from achieving their best health.

• Collecting provider race and ethnicity information through our provider data management tool on the provider portal (NaviNet®).

• Partnering with Rite Aid, faith-based organizations and the New Jersey Department of Health to co-host pop-up vaccine clinics to increase the COVID-19 vaccination rate among Newark residents.

• The Horizon Foundation for New Jersey, which directs 80 percent of its financial support and grants to organizations that support people of color. It is addressing health disparities, access to health care services, prevention and education for major diseases, such as obesity and opioid misuse. This includes a scholarship at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine as part of The Foundation’s Kids’ Oral Health Program.

We invite others — health care providers, industry leaders, community partners and policymakers — to join us as we continue to undertake this critical work.