Health Plus - Painting Asthma Out of the Picture

For Immediate Release

Painting Asthma Out of the Picture
Health Plus Holds 8th Annual Asthma Poster Contest

Media Inquiries:Kathryn Soman (718) 491-7493
Customer Inquiries: Marketing Department (888) 809-8009

Brooklyn, New York - May 29, 2009 — This past week, managed care organization Health Plus held the judging portion of its 8th Annual Asthma Poster Contest at the company’s executive offices at 335 Adams Street in downtown Brooklyn, partnering, once again, with the New York City Department of Transportation, the Department of Education, and other community organizations.

Judges Elsie Perez, Comptroller for Mastermind; Dr. David Ackman, Medical Director for Health Plus; Kimberly George, MIA, Executive Director of the Greater Brooklyn Health Coalition; Karen Myrie, MD, MPH, Medical Director for Lutheran FHCN School Health Program; Dr. Purnima Naik, Director of Health Education for the Morris Heights Health Center; Dani Simons, Director of Strategic Communication for the NYC Department of Transportation; Sylvia D’Alessandro, former Director of Provider Relations for Health Plus; and Betty Rothbart, Fitness and Health Education for the NYC Department of Education, observed and critiqued 92 entries from 21 different elementary schools from across all five boroughs of New York City and Nassau County. The theme for this year’s contest was “Making the Connection: Asthma, Air Quality and Clean Transportation”. All contestants were rated using six criteria: Accuracy of message, effectiveness, creativity, originality, adherence to the guidelines, and positive concept.

After three rounds of judging, 12 finalists were selected, including the top three winners: Samia Houqe, a Fourth Grade Student from PS 64 in Queens, who took third place; Jessica Staniszewski, a 5th Grader from PS 277 in Brooklyn, who came in second, and first place winner Lizeth Martinez, a 5th Grader from PS 169 in Brooklyn. In addition, two honorable mentions from the 12 finalists were entries submitted by Alejandro Barrera and Nathaniel Henderson; both 4th grade students from Ulysses Byas Elementary School, part of the Roosevelt School District in Nassau County, Long Island. All 12 finalists will be honored during a special awards ceremony at CitiField Stadium, home of the New York Mets, on June 11th.

“Asthma is a problem that has an enormous impact on our community,” says Tom Early, Executive Director of Health Plus. “It’s imperative that we do everything we can to educate our schoolchildren, as well as their parents and teachers, regarding proper treatment and symptom prevention for this disease to ensure the best health possible for all children. At Health Plus, we’re always very proud to hold this contest and we are honored to have such great partners working with us on this important mission.”

For More information About Keeping Kids in School Asthma Education Program Please Call or email: Osiris Marte, Health Education Manager Omarte@healthplus-ny.org

Elsie Perez, David Ackman, Kimberly George, Karen Myrie, Purnima Naik, Dani Simons, Sylvia D’Alessandro,and Betty Rothbart assess the entries during the 8th annual Health Plus Asthma Poster Contest Judging Ceremony.

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Health Plus, a not-for-profit, multi-cultural organization, is one of the fastest growing managed care organizations in New York City. It was established in 1984 with a commitment to provide coordinated quality health care and improving access to health care for uninsured and underserved families. In its annual review of managed care plans, the New York State Department of Health ranked Health Plus as the top plan for quality in its 2002 and 2003 "Consumer's Guide to Medicaid Managed Care in New York City." Health Plus is New York City's leading provider of Child Health Plus, a New York State Department of Health program that offers parents FREE or low-cost health insurance for children under the age of 19. "CRAIN'S New York Business" magazine ranked Health Plus fifth among the largest health maintenance organizations in the New York area.