Hall of Fame Health launched to help former NFL players

Hall of Fame Health, a nationwide effort to offer services to any former NFL player or team employee and ir families, anunced its partnership Tuesday with 12 medical care providers.

program will attempt to make everything from treatment to insurance plans to vice available to thousands of people who have spent time in league.

“What guys are just asking for is can't we do something comprehensive in health care and and insurance for m and ir spouses and kids," said Jeremy Hogue, CEO of Hall of Fame Health.

Hogue estimates 80% of league’s nearly 20,000 former players are t covered under employer-sponsored medical plans and must shop for insurance cover each year during national open-enrollment period, which this year begins v. 1.

"For a lot of those guys, doctors and health care came to m when y were playing, and all of a sudden when y were done — and most of m are done in ir late 20s and early 30s — y don’t have that resource anymore. Especially if y move back home from city where y were playing.

“We're trying to put some things toger with our great partners on a national scale to help get insurance, help get care, and help get m information. Wher someone played 20 years or 20 minutes on a practice squ in training camp, if you touched game we want to help those guys and ir spouses and kids.”

Hall of Fame Health has lined up a dozen providers:

Andrews Institute (performance training and orthopedic services) provider in Gulf Breeze, Florida; Aultman Health (hospitals) in Stark County, Ohio, where Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton is located; Baylor Scott & White Health (largest t-for-profit health care system in Texas); Emory Healthcare (Emory University Hospital and 10 or hospitals in Atlanta area); HCA Houston Healthcare (network of hospitals, outpatient surgery centers, free-standing emergency centers and diagstic imaging facilities); Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush (orthopedic facility in Illiis and Indiana); OrthoLoneStar (largest independent orthopedic group in Texas); Tampa (Florida) General Hospital; UCSF Health (San Francisco); Vanderbilt Health (Tennessee); HorHealth (Phoenix); and Providence Saint John’s Health Center (Santa Monica, California).

Hogue is confident re will be such partners, along with companies that can help former NFL members in invative new business ventures; partnering with market leers in go-to-market strategies; coordinating game-changing research; and raising funds for those in need of financial assistance or services.

“We are fortunate game of football has a lot of cachet in this country,” Hogue said, “and a lot of people who want to be associated with it. re are a lot of different partners we are speaking with, including some ground-breaking companies doing things around digital health and drug discovery and things we think we can be a part of.”

Hall of Fame Health is part of a long-term plan to offer a variety of programs to help improve lives of people who have been part of sport.

“When we talk about ‘horing heroes of game,’ it’s more than documenting ir accomplishments on field. It’s about caring about m off field as well,” said David Baker, president and CEO of Pro Football Hall of Fame. “And that care is t limited to members of Hall of Fame; it’s for everyone associated with great game of football. Hall of Fame Health and se network partners will improve quality of life by providing world-class health care to thousands of men and women who have been associated with National Football League and its 32 clubs.”

Im credits: AP