Anthem to Contribute $1 million to Indy Chamber Rapid Response Loan Fund to Assist Small Businesses Affected by Coronavirus Pandemic

INDIANAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Anthem, Inc. announced today that it will contribute $1 million to the newly created Rapid Response Loan Fund, established by the Indy Chamber. This loan fund will provide a critical economic bridge for the nearly 43,000 small businesses in Central Indiana.

Indy Chamber, which represents businesses in the nine-county metro area, created the Rapid Response Loan Fund to provide fast, affordable emergency assistance to small for-profit and nonprofit organizations in Central Indiana. This capital can be used to pay employee salaries and other business expenses, or as a bridge loan until additional funding can be secured from a financial institution or the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA).

“Local employers and their employees in Anthem’s hometown are feeling the negative impact and uncertainty of COVID-19 right now,” said Anthem President and CEO Gail K. Boudreaux. “Small businesses, especially, face the challenge of accessing the capital they need to keep their businesses running and support their employees. As an Indianapolis-based company for 75 years, Anthem is pleased to join the Indy Chamber’s efforts to mobilize quickly and help stabilize Central Indiana’s economy. We encourage others in the business community to join us in this important endeavor."

Small businesses in the nine-county Indianapolis area who want to apply for a Rapid Response Loan can go to response.indychamber.com/loans.

In recent weeks, Anthem has announced other measures to support businesses, healthcare consumers and care providers in the community, including:

• Waiving copays, coinsurance and deductibles for the diagnostic test related to COVID-19 and relaxing early prescription refill limits of most maintenance medications.
• Waiving cost shares for members using Anthem’s telemedicine service, LiveHealth Online, as well as care received from other telehealth providers delivering virtual care in order to help prevent spread of coronavirus and improve access to care.
• Launching the Anthem Medical Associate Volunteer Program to activate associates with professional medical training to volunteer and assist in their local community’s response to COVID-19.
• Launching a COVID-19 symptom assessment tool available via the Sydney Care mobile app to enable Anthem members to connect directly to a board-certified doctor via text or secure two-way video.
• Suspending certain prior authorization requirements to allow healthcare providers to focus on caring for patients diagnosed with COVID-19.

In addition, through various partnerships with organizations like the American Red Cross, Americares, Feeding America and numerous others, Anthem is helping to provide emergency assistance to individuals, personal protective equipment and training to health workers on the frontlines and food for kids and families affected by school closures across the country.

About Anthem, Inc.

Anthem is a leading health benefits company dedicated to improving lives and communities, and making healthcare simpler. Through its affiliated companies, Anthem serves more than 79 million people, including 41 million within its family of health plans. We aim to be the most innovative, valuable and inclusive partner. For more information, please visit www.antheminc.com or follow @AnthemInc on Twitter.