Free helmets at Cherry Festival

(Grand Rapids, Mich. - July 2, 2010) Priority Health is teaming up with the National Cherry Festival to hand out 400 helmets at the National Kids' Cherry Town Fun Night, Wednesday, July 7 from 4 to 8 p.m. The event is being held at the F&M Park in downtown Traverse City.

"At Priority Health we put a huge focus on prevention," said Kimberly K. Horn, president and chief executive officer for Priority Health. "That is why we are happy to team up with the National Cherry Festival to sponsor the children’s area and promote health, wellness and safety to the community. Providing helmets is an easy way to protect one of our most important resources – our children."

The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that only 25 percent of children ages 5 through 14 wear a helmet when riding. The Insurance Institute for Highway safety indicates that in the event of a crash, wearing a bicycle helmet reduces the risk of serious head injury by as much as 85 percent and the risk for brain injury by as much as 88 percent.

Priority Health's cycling team will be at the event to discuss bicycle safety and the importance of wearing a helmet. The helmets will be available to attendees on a first-come-first-serve basis.

Priority Health is a sponsor of the children’s activities at the festival. More information on the National Cherry Festival is available at www.cherryfestival.org.

About Priority Health:

Priority Health is an award-winning health plan nationally recognized for creating innovative solutions that impact health care costs while maximizing customer experience. It offers a broad portfolio of products for employer groups and individuals including Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries. As a nonprofit company, Priority Health serves more than 600,000 people and continues to be rated among the best health plans in the nation by the National Committee for Quality Assurance.