LVHN will partner with Pocono Raceway and Monroe County Law Enforcement in the initiative aimed to improve communication between police officers and special-needs drivers
Long Pond, Pa. (April 29, 2025) – After introducing the Blue Envelope Program to both Lehigh and Northampton Counties, Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), part of Jefferson Health, will now expand the program aimed at helping communication between special-needs drivers and police officers to Monroe County. On April 29 at 11 a.m., LVHN will host an event at the Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital Inclusive Playground at Pocono Raceway to distribute Blue Envelopes to Monroe County police departments.
“After deploying the program in Lehigh County and Northampton Counties, we received significant interest to partner with other counties in the communities we serve, and we are thrilled to collaborate with Monroe County Law Enforcement and Pocono Raceway to offer this resource to even more people,” said Joshua Houck, Director, Emergency Preparedness, LVHN.
The Blue Envelope Program is free and primarily aimed at drivers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but also can apply to those with other communications difficulties, anxiety or conditions that might hurt their ability to communicate during a traffic stop, accident or other interactions with police.
“Myself and the other Monroe County Police Chiefs are excited to implement this program in our communities to help ease the communication and lessen the stress for drivers who are on the autism disorder spectrum during traffic stops,” said Chris Wagner, Chief of Pocono Mountain Regional Police Department.
“LVHN has been a long-time partner of Pocono Raceway, and when they told us about the Blue Envelope Program, we knew it was something we wanted to be part of,” said Ben May, President of Pocono Raceway. “The Raceway is just as invested in the drivers in our community as we are the drivers on our track, so supporting this initiative made perfect sense.”
Under the program, drivers carry a blue envelope in their vehicle. The front of the envelope notes the driver is on the autism spectrum and indicates if that person is verbal or nonverbal. It includes instructions for the driver on what they should do during a traffic stop. The back of the envelope has tips for police to help their interaction with the driver go as smoothly as possible.
Inside that envelope is a sheet that explains the Blue Envelope Program and provides contact information for those who would be able to provide medical information or assistance in interacting with the driver if that becomes necessary. The sheet explains that ASD can impair the driver’s ability to communicate, that they may have difficulty understanding or responding to questions or display physical signs of being uncomfortable.
Drivers in the program are instructed to let law enforcement know they have a blue envelope and to retrieve the envelope when asked by police. It’s recommended ASD and other special-needs drivers keep copies of their driver’s license, registration and insurance information in the blue envelope along with the information sheet that contains the emergency contacts.
Pediatrician Jill Colabroy, MD, with Lehigh Valley Physician Group (LVPG) Pediatrics, said the program helps police officers and drivers establish immediate communication that can help create a better experience for all involved.
“Much like patients sometimes feel anxious about going to the doctor, getting pulled over by a police officer can be nerve-wracking, especially for someone with autism,” Dr. Colabroy said. “By having open, honest and meaningful conversation with our patients, we can often alleviate some of that angst. This tool helps both police and drivers have a starting point for effective communication, reducing worry and fear and increasing awareness, which is a win-win for everyone.”
Blue envelopes can be obtained in several ways: from police departments in Monroe, Lehigh, and Northampton Counties, at Pocono Raceway, at LVPG Family Medicine, LVPG Pediatrics and LVPG Internal Medicine offices, or by requesting one at LVHN.org/blueenvelope, where a full list of participating organizations is listed. The patient and family information page inside the envelope is available in English and Spanish.
About Jefferson
Lehigh Valley Health Network is now proudly part of Jefferson Health. Nationally ranked, Jefferson, which is principally located in the Greater Philadelphia region, Lehigh Valley and northeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, is reimagining health care and higher education to create unparalleled value. Jefferson is more than 65,000 people strong, dedicated to providing the highest-quality, compassionate clinical care for patients; making our communities healthier and stronger; preparing tomorrow’s professional leaders for 21st-century careers; and creating new knowledge through basic/programmatic, clinical and applied research. Thomas Jefferson University, home of Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Jefferson College of Nursing, and the Kanbar College of Design, Engineering and Commerce, dates back to 1824 and today comprises 10 colleges and three schools offering 200+ undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 8,300 students. Jefferson Health, nationally ranked as one of the top 15 not-for-profit health care systems in the country and the largest provider in the Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley areas, serves patients through millions of encounters each year at 32 hospitals and more than 700 outpatient and urgent care locations throughout the region. Jefferson Health Plans is a not-for-profit managed health care organization providing a broad range of health coverage options in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for more than 35 years.
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