These statues were brought to live events in high traffic public areas in four cities throughout California. We even placed a large grouping of statues in the bleachers at a San Francisco Giants baseball game. Blue Shield staff was always on hand to answer questions and hand out educational material. Each event also had a “Chat Box” video recording booth where people could share their thoughts and feelings on this challenging issue. Many of these clips were later posted on the campaign website—LetsShieldCalifornia.com. The site used imagery of the statues to create an almost never-ending landscape of the uninsured. Visitors could get their head around the scale of the problem through several lighthearted activities meant to educate without “preaching.” They could also watch a campaign video, read Blue Shield’s perspective and take action by sending a letter to members of Congress.

The campaign generated publicity value of nearly $2 million. It created over 180 regional TV and radio press hits plus over 30 print and online articles. In the end, an estimated 10 million people were exposed to the campaign and over 1,700 have sent Congress a letter through our site.