Nimoy family and L.A. Care Health Plan join forces to encourage COVID-19 vaccination

Billboard from Nimoy family and L.A. Care Health encouraging the COVID-19 vaccine

MAY 13, 2021 - Earlier this week, the L.A. Care Health Plan announced a partnership with the family of the late Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy. The “Live Long and Prosper” billboard and social media campaign is targeted at encouraging vaccination against COVID-19, as well as the continued use of face masks to prevent the spread of the disease. Details of the campaign announcement were posted to StarTrek.com.

Billboards used in the campaign will feature masked individuals and a brief message encouraging vaccination. L.A. Care is the largest publicly-operated health care plan in the United States, and has long been a proponent of vaccinations and mask use during the course of the pandemic. The collaboration with the Nimoy family, along with permission from ViacomCBS, is intended to further their efforts in a city that has struggled in the fight against COVID-19.

“Dare I say, it was the logical thing to do. We were honored to be approached by the Nimoy family after they saw our billboards showing masked individuals,” said John Baackes, L.A. Care’s CEO. “Leonard Nimoy and the beloved phrase ‘Live Long and Prosper’ will forever hold a place in our hearts, and we know they can help us get out the word about some very important steps that will help us all protect ourselves and our loved ones.”

Julie Nimoy, daughter of the late actor and co-founder of the Los Angeles-based organization Remembering Leonard Nimoy, commented on the deep meaning of Mr. Spock’s iconic expression, saying, “The phrase ‘Live Long and Prosper’ spreads a message that my dad strongly believed in – not only for a long and healthy life, but it also represents peace, tolerance, diversity and unity. This project really is a continuation of his mission on lung health.” Leonard Nimoy was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (or COPD) in 2013 and spent the remaining two years of his life raising awareness about the progressive lung disease. The Nimoy family sees the collaboration with L.A. Care as an extension of Nimoy’s work, believing that the actor would have encouraged mask use and vaccination against COVID-19.

The “Live Long and Prosper” billboard and social media campaign is expected to continue through at least the end of 2021.