Optum is working to reverse the maternal health crisis by:
- Leveraging our assets, expertise and big data insights to improve care
- Founding pregnancy.org, a non-profit that provides information to pregnant people
- Launching pilot programs in Optum clinics aimed at decreasing maternal morbidity
- Providing $1.4 million in maternal health grants — and pro bono services — to numerous community organizations
Optum has partnered with the Ladies of Hope Ministries (LOHM) to launch a doula training program for women who have been released from prison, helping create a more diverse health care workforce. Doulas provide prenatal and birth support and postpartum care to women in prison as well as non-incarcerated women.
Volunteering at Optum goes beyond simply showing up to serve. Team members partner with local communities to drive impact by:
- Supporting schools across the country with STEM programs like AI (artificial intelligence) racing clubs or the MERIT Health Leadership Academy in Baltimore, Maryland, where Optum team members provided more than 250 volunteer hours to address diversity in health care. MERIT empowers students from under-represented backgrounds to become health professionals and change agents who advance equity.
- Working with more than 100 Employee Community Councils and Connected Cities to advance equity, diversity and inclusion.
In 2021, pro bono volunteers gave 75k hours of skills-based volunteering and $17 million in estimated financial impact to our partner organizations. In total, Optum pro bono efforts impacted over 870K lives.
In the news

Optum and John Muir Health collaborate
Optum employees are providing $1 million in pro bono services to improve people’s health and wellness in the Bay Area, in partnership with John Muir Health.
Advancing health equity through better maternal health outcomes
LGBTQ+ education program for providers
SSM Health and Optum Launch Innovative Collaboration