Tax credits available for donations to WVU Medicine Children’s Injury Prevention and Safety Program
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Businesses and individuals who make a minimum donation of $500 to the WVU Medicine Children’s Injury Prevention and Safety Program can receive West Virginia Development Office Neighborhood Investment Program (NIP) tax credits for the current fiscal year, which ends on June 30.
The West Virginia Legislature established NIP in 1996 to increase charitable giving to local nonprofit organizations in order to increase the capacity of those organizations to serve low-income residents. NIP allows 501(c)3-designated charitable organizations to apply for tax credit vouchers, which are then distributed to businesses and individuals who make donations to the organizations. Donors earn credits for up to 50 percent of the contributed amount to reduce corporate net income taxes, business franchise taxes, and personal income taxes.
The WVU Medicine Children’s Injury Prevention and Safety Program supports low-income West Virginia residents by providing families below the federal poverty level with car seats, child-proofing equipment, and other safety items and education.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “injuries are the leading cause of death in children ages 19 and younger. But most child injuries can be prevented.”
“When a child comes to the hospital with a preventable injury, we need to make sure that child and his/her siblings leave safer than they were before,” Christine Haufe, R.N., B.S.N., coordinator of the WVU Medicine Children’s Injury Prevention and Safety Program and child passenger safety technician, said. “It’s not just the items we provide, but also the education for the families to help keep kids safe.”
Businesses and individuals interested in obtaining NIP credits from WVU Medicine Children’s should contact Dee O’Palko, director of annual giving, at 304-598-4346 or opalkod@wvumedicine.org.
WVU Medicine Children’s – currently located on the sixth floor of J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, WVU Medicine’s flagship hospital – provides maternal, infant, and pediatric care for West Virginia and the surrounding region, giving care to high-risk mothers, premature infants, and children with life-threatening conditions through adolescence to adulthood. In 2020, WVU Medicine Children’s will move into a new tower and ambulatory care center to be attached to Ruby Memorial. For more information, including ways to support the $60-million capital campaign for Children’s new home, visit wvumedicine.org/childrens.