Sentara Healthcare and Optima Health have announced a $100 million partnership with the Local Initiatives Support Corporation to address social determinants of health in underserved Virginia communities.

Sentara will contribute $50 million to advance the partnership's goals, while LISC will work to raise an additional $50 million from public and private sources. As part of its investment, LISC will open an office in Hampton Roads to drive programmatic action and deploy capital in partnership with its national team. LISC Hampton Roads will complement the organization's longstanding program office in Richmond and its Rural LISC investment program, which has been supporting efforts across the state.

Research has shown that social determinants of health — the conditions in which people live, work, and learn — have a significant and lasting impact on health outcomes. To address some of the fundamental issues in public health, the partners will work to encourage the development and construction of affordable housing, including supportive units for individuals with mental and behavioral health needs, and promote social services and healthcare access for residents. The partnership also will support efforts to prepare people for jobs in growth industries and provide support to local entrepreneurs.

According to Sentara, more than two hundred and fifty thousand children in Virginia live in poverty, and over 50 percent of those children live in households that spent at least half of their income on housing, leaving families with little money to spend on transportation, exercise, medical care, or healthy and nutritious food.

"We know from both data and experience that when we catalyze opportunity for residents and communities, we can help people live longer and healthier lives," said LISC president and CEO Maurice A. Jones, who was raised in rural southern Virginia and later served as commissioner of Virginia's department of social services. "By partnering with an integrated health system like Sentara, we can push aside barriers to health care, housing, education, and employment, while supporting a shared prosperity [across] the commonwealth. We are grateful for Sentara's commitment to the people of Virginia and to innovative approaches to community health."