IU Health and White County Health Department partner to offer free heart and lung scans

Indiana University Health White Memorial has partnered with the White County Health Department to help more Hoosiers access important health screenings.

Through this collaboration, White County residents who meet certain criteria will be able to receive a heart and/or lung scan at no cost at White Memorial Hospital. The health department is covering the cost of scans administered through this program.

Why it matters

Heart and lung scans are convenient and simple—and potentially life-saving. They can detect signs of heart disease and lung cancer, and help patients better understand their risk of developing these diseases in the future.

For example, A 2011 National Cancer Institute-sponsored trial demonstrated that IU Health’s lung screening technique has the ability to detect smaller nodules than X-rays or standard CT scans. The result is a 20 percent decrease in lung cancer mortality.

“On top of the health benefits of these scans, we want to encourage White County residents to take advantage of our fantastic local healthcare resources,” says Katie Blackman, White County Health Department Administrator.

Eligibility criteria

White County residents who wish to take advantage of this program must meet the following standard criteria.

Heart scans

• Have an existing primary care physician 
• Reside in White County
• Be 40+ years of age
• Have a history of smoking, diabetes, obesity or high blood pressure
• Have a family history of heart disease, stroke and/or vascular disease
• Have had no previous heart scan within the past five years

Lung scans

• Have an existing primary care physician
• Reside in White County
• Be 50+ years of age
• Have a history of smoking 30+ packs a year
• Currently smoke or have quit smoking less than 15 years ago
• Have had no previous chest CT scan within the past 18 months

Individuals do not need to be current IU Health patients to participate; scan results will be sent to the patient’s primary care physician.

To see if they qualify and to get scheduled for a scan, interested individuals should email the White County Health Department office manager Katie Blackman at katie.blackman@whitecounty.in.gov or call her at 574.583.4025.