‘Healthy Communities’ for people with intellectual disabilities

Day one of the 2012 Clinton Global Initiative saw the single largest donation to Special Olympics, the world’s biggest organization for people with disabilities.

Pledged by businessman and philanthropist Tom Golisano, the funds will allow the Special Olympics to launch an initiative aimed at improving health outcomes for people with intellectual disabilities. The Healthy Communities program will cover seven countries — Mexico, Peru, Romania, Malawi, South Africa, Malaysia, and Thailand — and six states in the United States namely Arizona, Florida, Kansas, New Jersey, Wisconsin and New York.

“This grant will put right into their own hands and their families, the opportunity to guarantee the best possible known outcomes for their health problems,” said Andrew Bonner, CEO of Health One Global USA, at a CGI news conference.

Health One Global has developed and managed the global database containing Special Olympics’ health care information. Speaking to Devex at CGI Sept. 23, Stan Shepherd, chairman of Health One Global, said an analysis of the data led to “shocking” conclusions, which mirror the situation of any disadvantaged group around the world.

Lars Schwetje contributed reporting from New York.

Check out the rest of our interview with Stan Shepherd, as well as our conversations with other global development luminaries who attended this year’s Clinton Global Initiative.