The Fund’s Phyllis Newman Women’s Health Initiative (PNWHI) is a beneficiary of the yearly event. “I know from personal experience the fear and pain that can spring from a major medical crisis,” said Tony Award-winning actress Phyllis Newman, who helped to initiate the program in 1996, in a statement. “In 1983, I was diagnosed with breast cancer which led to a double mastectomy. At that time, you didn’t hear a lot of inspirational stories, and you didn’t know many people who were survivors because everyone was so quiet about it. This is no longer the case. Today, my female colleagues in entertainment have PNWHI: a safe place to go to address serious medical concerns and get confidential and compassionate help.”
Each year PNWHI helps hundreds of women in the performing arts and entertainment profession who are in health crisis—many whose treatment is compromised by lack of health insurance.
Visit www.actorsfund.org.