• Award recognizes multi-company collaboration as a model for corporate social impact
• Partnership with UAB's Live HealthSmart Alabama has delivered 7,000+ wellness visits and served 17,000+ customers via fresh food mobiles in rural and underserved Alabama communities
• The Interrupt is expanding to additional U.S. cities
[WASHINGTON, MAY 12, 2026] — The Interrupt, a place-based initiative advancing community health in partnership with local organizations, has been named a recipient of the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship (BCCCC) Social Impact Changemaker Innovation Award. The award recognizes The Interrupt's upstream, multi-sector approach to chronic disease prevention.
A Different Model for Corporate Social Impact
What distinguishes The Interrupt is the role of trusted local partners, who lead strategy on the ground while companies contribute distinct expertise. Bank of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the J. Willard & Alice S. Marriott Foundation, and UAB's Live HealthSmart Alabama each bring different capabilities to a coordinated effort.
Alabama: Measurable Outcomes at Scale
Since 2022, The Interrupt has partnered with UAB's Live HealthSmart Alabama (LHSA) — the University of Alabama Birmingham's flagship community health program — to expand access to healthy food, physical activity, healthcare, and the built environment across rural and underserved communities in Alabama, including Birmingham, Selma, Demopolis, Georgiana, and Dothan.
Working alongside Uber Health, Alabama Power, Brasfield & Gorrie, and many more community partners, the initiative has delivered:
• 17,000+ customers served via fresh food mobiles across 28 zip codes
• 7,000+ wellness visits across participating communities
• 22,000 linear feet of new sidewalks installed, expanding safe access to recreation and daily activity
• 40%+ increase in mobile market customers, with markets accepting SNAP benefits
• 49% of participants connected to a primary care provider for the first time
• 48% of patients screened in 2025 reporting improved A1C levels
Washington, D.C.: Whole Health in Ward 8
In Washington, D.C., The Interrupt's View Strong initiative operates at Washington View, a community of 3,000 residents in Ward 8 — an area where nearly 20% of residents live with diabetes and a single grocery store serves 75,000 people. View Strong takes an integrated, resident-centered approach, weaving together food access, workforce development, healthcare, and financial literacy into a coordinated ecosystem built with and for residents.
Current programming includes an on-site urban farm and free food marketplace, on-site wellness visits through Unity Health Care, health screenings through Black Nurses Rock, mental health support through Friendship Bench DC, and workforce training through Skyland Workforce Center.
Expanding in 2026
Building on results in Alabama and Washington, D.C., The Interrupt is expanding to additional U.S. cities, bringing its place-based, multi-sector model to new communities facing similar challenges.
Reflecting on the recognition, Apurva Patel, Director, U.S. Corporate Sustainability & Social Impact at Novo Nordisk and The Interrupt, said, "This recognition reflects what becomes possible when companies work together to address the everyday challenges that shape community health. Through The Interrupt, we achieve our goals quicker through collaboration. Upstream prevention aligns with our commitment to doing what's fundamentally right. By focusing on population health, we engage transparently across sectors without business motivations—preventing diseases we treat commercially while pooling expertise to make a larger impact together than we could alone."
About The Interrupt
Launched by Novo Nordisk, The Interrupt is a registered 501(c)(4) organization that improves whole-person health by addressing the social determinants of health — the everyday factors that shape our well-being. The Interrupt and its partners deliver community-focused programs, events, and initiatives in the places where they're needed most, moving from fragmented care toward integrated, whole-health solutions built with and for communities.
**Media Contact **
Patrick Bond, FGS Global
Updates
More from the movement
Keep reading what matters most
.jpeg)