Building healthy communities

The health and well-being of the people in our communities is important to us. We believe that healthy communities lead to a healthier world. Aetna employees have logged 4.3 million volunteer hours and counting since 2003. Employees have donated more than 400,000 hours for each of the last five years.

We  have made it our goal to incorporate a sense of mindfulness in to many of the events which we attend and support. 

Read about Aetna’s mindfulness mission

We are honored to have received many notable awards recognizing our commitment to bettering communities across the nation.

See some of our awards and recognition

Uniting and empowering communities

We work year-round to encourage communities to live healthy and support our daily heroes. Some of our efforts include:

• Race for the Cure - Aetna is a presenting sponsor of the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s Race for the Cure events in several locations across the nation. These events comprise the world’s largest and most successful education and fundraising event for breast cancer.  
• Marine Corps Marathon -  For several years, Aetna is proud to be the presenting sponsor of the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. The Marathon aims to promote physical fitness and generate community goodwill for our troops.   In addition, we are a proud supporter of many other running events across the country, such as the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle Health and Fitness Expo (Chicago, IL), Flying Pig Marathon (Cincinnati), Rocky Mountain Half Marathon (Estes Park, CO) and the Philadelphia Marathon.
• American Heart Association – Go Red - We help to sponsor “Go Red for Women” events, which are part of a nationwide effort from the American Heart Association to educate women about heart disease, their number-one health risk. 
• LGBT community support - We are honored to have received a perfect score on the Corporate Equality Index. This is a national survey on corporate policies and practices related to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workplace equality. We support many LGBT community events.
• Billings Forge Farmer’s Market - We provide free, roundtrip shuttles for our employees to attend and support the Billings Forge Farmer’s Market in Hartford. As part of the program, we match every dollar that employees spend there. The more employees spend at the market, the more Aetna gives back to the community! 

Supporting brighter futures

We believe in the importance of shaping better futures for today’s youth. Here are a handful of the educational and empowerment initiatives and events with which we’ve been involved:

• Read Across America - Aetna volunteers across the country celebrate Read Across America Day by reading to elementary school children. Also known as Dr. Seuss Day, the initiative was started in 1998 by the National Education Association. It’s observed on the school day closest to March 2, which was Dr. Seuss’ (Theodor Geisel’s) birthday.
• Young Women’s Leadership Corps - In 2015, as part of our high school summer internship program, we started a partnership with Hartford’s Young Women’s Leadership Corps. The program has helped young women learn about career possibilities, and we were introduced to a promising group of future professionals.
• Hole in the Wall Gang Camp - Aetna collaborates with the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp  in the Greater Hartford area to give customized camping adventures to children with serious health conditions.
• Make-A-Wish Foundation  - For years, our employees have helped children across the nation turn their grandest dreams into reality.
• Community gardens  - In collaboration with the American Heart Association and the Aetna Foundation, our “teaching gardens” initiative gives school children access to community gardens, as well as gardens at their schools. We work together to educate students about the importance of fresh fruits and vegetables. We also support AHA’s first community kitchen, which provides affordable, heart-healthy cooking lessons to those in need.
• 105 Voices of History  - The 105 Voices of History is a national initiative by the Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs) Choir. It was created to promote diversity in America’s national venues for the arts.  It aims to increase the exposure of HBCUs to diverse audiences, from corporate America to the youngest students. One goal is to attract students to higher education through the choir’s performances.

Celebrating diversity

We go above and beyond when our customers have needs, whether in the United States of America or internationally. 

• 100 Black Men in America national conference - We co-sponsored the 30th annual national 100 Black Men in America conference, held in New Orleans. Continuing our mission to help improve the lives, educational opportunities and health status of African Americans, we helped to provide more than 3,500 people with free health education and screenings.
• Hispanic Heritage Month – Telemundo Health Fair - We helped to integrate health and wellness at the Telemundo Health Fair in Phoenix during Hispanic Heritage Month, which had nearly 30,000 attendees.
• Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Parade - Aetna employees and their families participated in this annual parade in Jacksonville, Fla. Our participation was a great opportunity to celebrate the life and efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
• Latin American Festival - Held in Charlotte, N.C., the Latin American Festival celebrates years of music, food and fun. We participate as part of La Coalición, a community of Latin Americans, immigrants and allies that promotes full and equal participation of all people in civic, economic and cultural life.
• Aetna’s Asians in Motion Riverfront Recapture & dragon boat race - We sponsor and participate in the annual Asians in Motion Riverfront Recapture and dragon boat race. This event showcases and celebrates Asian culture, highlighted by dragon boat racing.