Social Isolation Challenge

Develop a software platform that increases awareness of, access to and use of social engagement help stop social isolation

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page. Update From the Office on Women's Health Learn More     Mobilizing and Empowering the Nation and Technology to Address Loneliness & social isolation (MENTAL) Health Innovation Challenge   Today, the Administration for Community Living (ACL) and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health launched the MENTAL Health Challenge to combat the social isolation and loneliness that older adults, people with disabilities and veterans often experience.  A total of $750,000 in prizes will be awarded for development of an easy-to-use online system that offers recommendations for programs, activities and resources that can help users connect to others and engage in the community, based on their individual needs, interests and abilities. The winning system will be announced and demonstrated in January 2021 at CES , an annual trade show produced by the Consumer Technology Association. It ultimately will become the centerpiece of a national public awareness campaign. Social disconnection has enormous health consequences. Social isolation has been found to be as harmful to a person's health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day, and people who are socially isolated or lonely face higher risk of hospitalization; depression, anxiety and suicide; heart failure and stroke; dementia; and even premature death. Not surprisingly, a recent analysis found that Medicare spends an additional $6.7 billion every year on enrollees who are socially isolated. For more information on this important challenge, visit the HHS press release or Challenge.gov     Preferences | Unsubscribe | Subscription Help | Contact Us Did you get this as a forward? Sign up to receive Office on Women's Health updates. womenshealth.gov  |  OWH Helpline: 800-994-9662  |  womenshealth@hhs.gov

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