By: Beth Clark—
Muncie, IN—Governor Eric Holcomb is the recipient of Meridian Health Services’ 2020 Spirit of Meridian Award, a recognition that pays tribute to an individual who demonstrates proactive actions in promoting healthier communities. The annual recognition is awarded to someone who has contributed significantly to the overall health and well-being of people and somebody who goes above and beyond the call of duty.
“We could think of no one who has had more impact in a just a short period of time on the overall health of our state,” said Hank Milius, Meridian’s president and chief executive officer.
Governor Holcomb has identified healthcare as a major initiative in his legislative agenda and specifically focused on attacking the opioid crisis as one of his five pillars of accountability. Holcomb, on his first day in office in 2017, appointed the state’s first drug czar, tackling addiction and the state’s anti-drug efforts.
“In large part, the governor’s priorities mirror the ongoing work at Meridian. His support of these initiatives and demonstrating clear achievements made him our first choice for this annual award,” Milius said.
Holcomb reinforces his healthcare initiatives in the 2020 Next Level Agenda, which includes adding more recovery housing for Hoosiers coping with substance use disorder, more mental healthcare services, tools to assess substance use disorder in pregnancy, and prioritizes reducing neonatal abstinence syndrome.
The governor’s agenda also includes expanding recovery housing for people fighting opioid use. In addition, Holcomb’s efforts to influence Indiana’s infant mortality rate are showing signs of great improvement. Indiana’s infant mortality rate fell at the highest rate in six years.
The award will be given to Holcomb at the 2020 Rialzo, Meridian’s annual charity gala, which is April 18 at the Horizon Convention Center in Muncie, Indiana.
About Meridian Health Services
Meridian Health Services is a regional, progressive healthcare organization specializing in “whole-person” health, integrating physical, mental and social well-being to help people achieve their optimum health. Meridian serves more than 40,000 patients throughout Indiana offering a wide spectrum of healthcare specialties including primary medical care, pediatrics, inpatient/outpatient psychiatry, obstetrics/gynecology, addictions and recovery, dental, senior health, children and family programming, behavioral health and human services.
